This school year, Hyde has continued its push to teach our students about the impact of AI and the skills needed for today's and tomorrow's leaders. This week, we welcomed Hyde alum Tony Rea '69 back to campus for another workshop about how AI will shape careers, education, and society. Tony also Zoomed in real-world leaders from around the globe to discuss how to prepare for and thrive in the era of AI.
Tony graduated from the first class of Hyde and took much away from his one-year experience. As he said to the students, "The Hyde lessons I learned have stayed with me throughout my life and given me a leg up in business, as I have the self-knowledge and ability to work with and challenge others.” In his 35 years in high-performance computing and AI development, Tony has guided clients in AI adoption across many industries, like healthcare, finance, manufacturing, and academia. At Dell, he hosts the company's AI channel and drives innovation in customer engagement. His interests include quantum computing, science, playwriting, and historical preservation.
Tony spoke to the community. Then the four-person panel described their areas of expertise and took questions from the audience. The topics they covered included:
- What Generative AI is and how it is breaking ground in many sectors
- Aligning technology with business strategy
- What it means to integrate AI into your thinking and creativity
- How to use Technology to drive change in yourself and the world
Student comments after this event included
· "There are a lot of benefits to AI that can be used in a constructive way. There are also costs and dangers that come with it."
· "If you don't learn to use AI, you could lose your job to someone willing to learn it."
· "I'm worried about my career path if I don't go into AI in the future, but it seems there will be chances to use AI in every Industry."
Hyde's Chief Technology Officer, Brian Bickford, was also enthusiastic: "This workshop empowers our community to understand and embrace the transformative power of AI - not just as a technology but as a force reshaping the economy. redefining careers, and preparing the next generation for the jobs of tomorrow. It's all about awareness, adaptability, and opportunity in a rapidly changing world."
Laura D. Gauld