Florida’s public university leaders are consulting in-house and private-sector artificial intelligence experts to help formulate the state system’s approach to the technology.
In a discussion at the Florida Board of Governor’s meeting Wednesday at University of West Florida in Pensacola, the board queried a Google expert and officials from Florida International University, University of South Florida, and University of Florida.
The state is compiling a report about recommended AI use across the system in the “near-term,” governor Ed Haddock said. Haddock chairs the newly formed Task Force on Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity.
“A lot of our universities have done a great job of infusing AI into the curriculum across various majors and courses so that we can teach students how to use AI thoughtfully in their work,” Board of Governors Chair Alan Levine said.
The system created the task force because of “all the potential risks that do exist for us out there with the increased use of AI, but also the opportunities,” Levine said.
The University of Florida reports it offers more than 230 AI-related courses and is host to the most powerful university-owned supercomputer in the United States. UF lays out its AI vision on a dedicated webpage.
“Suddenly, AI seems to be everywhere in our lives and in our work. Our job is to prepare students for this reality, even as it evolves,” the website states.
Florida State University’s website, Florida International University‘s and the University of Central Florida’s website lay out the approaches and offerings of each university.
AI is included in University of South Florida’s College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Computing, which offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in AI. Florida Gulf Coast University offers degrees, too.
Florida Atlantic University offers an undergraduate minor and a graduate degree in AI.
In April, the University of North Florida will host an AI symposium.
The University of West Florida offers an AI in the Workplace certificate and New College of Florida includes AI in its computer science coursework.
Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Levine suggested AI could lag the four-year graduation rate among students whose degrees and job outlooks have changed significantly during their time in school with the advent of AI.
Chris Hein, an AI expert from Google tasked with applying AI to the public sector, suggested to the board, for example, that AI could be helpful in applying for grants so scientists could have more time to do research.
Board of Governors Chair Alan Levine gives his state of the system address during a Board of Governors meeting Jan. 29, 2026, at Florida State University. (Phot by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) “For the first time in our history, the U.S. is actually one of the most lagging enthusiasm about a new technology,” Hein said of AI, comparing it to Europe and China, which he says have incorporated AI into their daily experiences, particularly China, at a faster rate.
Levine expressed concern about the possibility that some Florida students may not be prepared to work in an AI world if the institutions don’t keep pace.
“I just think that, as a board, we and the trustees are going to be faced with a lot of students in the next 48 months who are saying, ‘I just went through four years of education and I can’t find a job,'” Levine said. “… It’s just a little frightening to know that we’re operating a system that may produce a 35% unemployment rate for students.”
The university system’s decisionmakers expect to continue collaboration on a system-wide approach, weaving together the already-established and growing initiatives across the system.
“The other thing we haven’t observed or put on the record here is, yes, AI is going to eliminate a lot of jobs. But also, new jobs are going to be created, so the students do have to be flexible and trained broadly enough that they can pivot,” UF Provost Joseph Glover said, to a nod of approval by University of South Florida Provost Prasant Mohapatra.
Hein, the Google expert, compared AI to the industrial revolution, saying the new technology has been and will continue to be incorporated into every industry in some way.
“In many ways, I’m bullish that [students] are going to be the ones fastest to adjust to how the economy will change and what new jobs will exist as a result of this revolution,” Hein said.
Government intervention
Across government, leaders are weighing how, or whether, to engage with and regulate AI.
Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Senate pushed — but the Florida House did not — for SB 482, an AI Bill of Rights, in the legislative session just ended, which would have banned companion chatbots — AI systems that mimic emotional connection — from speaking to minors without parental consent, and require bots to remind users they are not human.
A parent would have had the ability to opt out their child from using AI tools at school. Elementary schools would have been banned from providing access to AI unless school personnel supervised the use, and it is for translation support for English learners or for disability accommodations.
Leaders differ as to whether AI should be regulated at a state or federal level.
“I think that this issue is too important to wait for Congress,” AI Bill of Rights sponsor Sen. Tom Leek, an Ormond Beach Republican, said during a committee hearing during session. “If your plan is to wait for Congress, God help you.”
House Speaker Daniel Perez, a Republican from Miami, sees it differently.
“The White House’s position on AI and the [Florida] House’s position on AI … are on the same page,” Perez said earlier this month. “We do believe that the federal government should take care of AI and in whatever legislation or policy has to pass on a national level as opposed to doing it on a state-by-state basis.”
President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning states from regulating AI; however, states retain their right to make laws.
DeSantis has been vocal about the role AI should play in society.
In July, he said, “I’m not one to say that we should just turn over our humanity to artificial intelligence. I think it’s very dangerous, potentially. Obviously, technology is what it is, it’s not like you just put your head in the sand and hope it all disappears.” The governor went on to predict “major, major upheavals in jobs” as AI advances.
DeSantis continued, “Are students just going to have artificial intelligence write their term paper? You know, it’s like, do we even need to think? And at that point, when you’re taking that away, then it’s like, ‘Okay, you know, we’re not going to think, we’re going to rely on this,’” he said.
Heavy reliance on AI paired with manipulated data fueling AI answers “can really change society in a lot of ways,” DeSantis warned.
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