South East Technological University hosted its first Community of Practice (CoP) event focused on artificial intelligence in research on Tuesday 29 April at the Kilkenny Road Campus, Carlow.
The CPD event, entitled 'Generative Artificial Intelligence – evolving, adapting and resisting', brought together researchers, academics and SETU support staff to explore how generative AI is reshaping the research landscape. The event forms part of SETU’s ongoing efforts to support ethical, responsible and innovative use of AI across the university.
Organised by Damien Raftery, Dr Hazel Farrell, and Prof Kim Murphy with support from the SETU Teaching and Learning Centre, the event was funded through the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education’s SATLE initiative.
Implications of large language models
The programme opened with an insightful keynote address by Dr Brian Casey, who examined the transformative impact of agent-based AI tools on academic research. His talk, 'Pay to win? The impact of agents in the academic and research environment', explored the implications of large language models on researcher autonomy, supervision, and academic culture.
Themed sessions
The event featured two themed sessions covering a wide range of perspectives on AI, from its use in supporting Universal Design for Learning (Sue Meehan), to its environmental impact (Colm O’Neill), and the challenges it presents for academic integrity (Mags Connolly, Tom Aherne, Dr Paul O’Leary, and others).
Workshops
Attendees also took part in hands-on workshops in the afternoon, choosing between 'AI Play 2 – Assessment Redesign', led by Dr Hazel Farrell and colleagues, and 'AI Connect: SETU’s Community of Practice for Ethical & Innovative Research', facilitated by Prof Kim Murphy and team.
New initiative
The launch of AI Connect marks a new SETU-wide initiative to support postgraduate researchers, supervisors, and academic staff in navigating the ethical and practical dimensions of using AI in research. This cross-campus Community of Practice will host regular sessions on AI literacy, tool experimentation, and collaborative problem-solving.
SETU invites the research community to engage with the new Community of Practice as it continues to support responsible innovation and thought leadership in the evolving AI landscape.
If you require further information, please contact Damien Raftery or Kim Murphy.