Will Generative AI Stunt or Enhance College Learning? Live Debate from Open to Debate and Johns Hopkins’ SNF Agora Institute

On October 27th in Baltimore, Open to Debate and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University kick off a new school year of "Hopkins Forum" debates with the following question: "Will Generative AI Stunt or Enhance College Learning?" The debate will be part of the Johns Hopkins Data Science and AI Institute Fall 2026 Symposium: Artificial Intelligence and Human Learning.

Research shows that the majority of college students use AI on a regular basis, but many are split on whether the technology is a useful tool or a hindrance to learning. With cheating reportedly on the rise and burdened professors struggling to detect AI work, many are concerned that student use of AI leads to a cognitive offloading that will inevitably be more harmful than any bad grade they may have hoped to avoid. Yet others see a potential savior, with AI offering personalized tutoring and learning tools like flashcards and quizzes. At the same time, the technology is becoming more and more integrated in workplaces, and teaching students how to utilize AI within individual fields of study may be critical to success after college.

Arguing that generative AI will enhance student learning is data scientist and social scientist Rumman Chowdhury, who was appointed by the Biden Administration as the first United States Science Envoy for Artificial Intelligence. Arguing that generative AI will stunt college learning is mathematician and data scientist Cathy O'Neil, who wrote the New York Times best-seller Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy. Both debaters will have a partner to be announced soon.

The event is presented by Open to Debate and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and is the seventh debate in their ongoing partnership, "The Hopkins Forum." It will take place on Tuesday, October 27, at 6:00 PM ET at Johns Hopkins University Homewood Campus, Shriver Hall (3400 N. Charles Street) in Baltimore. Media are invited to attend and can email [email protected] for access. The event will be recorded for later broadcast on the Open to Debate public radio show and podcast.

Launched in 2025, The Hopkins Forum has previously presented six live debates in both Washington DC and Baltimore. In the first debate, Jeff Sessions, Jeff Flake, Cristina Rodriguez, and Jamal Greene debated the future of the Supreme Court. In the second, former Congressman and CIA officer Will Hurd and State Department veteran Susan Thornton debated the US-China AI arms race. In the third, former CDC director Tom Frieden, influencer Doctor Mike Varshavski, former Surgeon General Jerome Adams, and emergency medicine physician Dara Kass debated whether COVID was a public health failure. The fourth saw tech policy experts debating the government breaking up Big Tech. The fifth saw Andrew Yang and Chris Hughes debate AI and the future of work. The sixth and most recent asked Is the Scientific Enterprise Too Risk-Averse? with Tyler Cowen and Kate the Chemist.

DEBATER BIOS

Rumman Chowdhury, CEO of Humane Intelligence PBC; Former U.S. Science Envoy for Artificial Intelligence
Dr. Rumman Chowdhury is a data scientist and social scientist. She is the founder of Humane Intelligence Public Benefit Corporation, which creates inclusive infrastructure for Generative AI evaluation. Previously, she co-founded the nonprofit Humane Intelligence, which builds a community of practice around evaluations of AI models.

She was appointed by the Biden Administration as the first United States Science Envoy for Artificial Intelligence. Dr. Chowdhury is also a Responsible AI Fellow at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. Previously, Dr. Chowdhury was the Director of the ML Ethics, Transparency, and Accountability (META) team at Twitter, as well as the Global Lead for Responsible AI at Accenture Applied Intelligence. She was named one of TIME's 100 most Influential People in AI, BBC's 100 Women, Worthy Magazine's Top 100, recognized as one of the Bay Area's top 40 under 40, and named by Forbes as one of "Five Who are Shaping AI." Chowdhury holds two undergraduate degrees from MIT, a master's degree in Quantitative Methods of the Social Sciences from Columbia University, and a doctorate in political science from the University of California, San Diego.

Cathy O'Neil, Mathematician and Data Scientist
Cathy O'Neil earned a Ph.D. in math from Harvard and worked as a math professor at Barnard College before switching over to the private sector, working as a quant for the hedge fund D.E. Shaw and as a data scientist in the New York start-up scene. In 2016 she wrote the book Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy, and in 2022 she wrote The Shame Machine: Who Profits in the New Age of Humiliation. She is the CEO of ORCAA, an algorithmic auditing company and a founder and board member of OCEAN, a non-profit defending the public interest against algorithmic harm.

ABOUT OPEN TO DEBATE
Open to Debate addresses a fundamental problem in America: the extreme polarization of our nation and our politics. We are the nation's only nonpartisan, debate-driven media organization dedicated to bringing multiple viewpoints together for a constructive, balanced, respectful exchange of ideas. Open to Debate is a platform for intellectually curious and open-minded people to engage with others holding opposing views on complex issues. We know debate works to find common ground: On average, 32% of the Open to Debate audience changes their mind on contentious topics after hearing a debate. That's the power of debate done right, and at scale, it can change the direction we're headed in America. Open to Debate is broadcast as a weekly public radio program, carried on NPR stations including WNYC (#1 in the nation). Open to Debate is made available as a podcast, video series, and digital platform, and records episodes with live audiences nationwide. Learn more at opentodebate.org, and subscribe to Open to Debate's Substack to access more than 350 debate archives, explore exclusive content, and engage with our community.

ABOUT THE SNF AGORA INSTITUTE
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University is an academic and public forum dedicated to strengthening global democracy through research, teaching, and practice. Founded in 2017 with a visionary $150 million grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the institute draws inspiration from the ancient Athenian agora-a space for open debate and deliberation-to bridge divides, expand civic engagement, and foster informed, inclusive, dialogue as the cornerstone of robust democracy.

SNF Agora organizes its work around three pillars:

• Discovery : Advancing transformative, multi-disciplinary research to address democratic decline and identify sources of resilience.
• Design : Collaborating with practitioners to develop usable knowledge that transforms academic insight into real-world impact.
• Dialogue : Creating spaces for inclusive civic discourse, public convenings, and educational programs that empower citizens to engage meaningfully in democracy.

Through its work, the SNF Agora Institute empowers citizens with diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and ideas to participate meaningfully in civic life. Its scholars and practitioners collaborate to address challenges to democracy, bridge divides, and cultivate democratic resilience through research, innovative interventions, and public engagement. For more information about the SNF Agora Institute, visit www.snfagora.jhu.edu.

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