Several Australian universities are partnering with OpenAI to provide students and staff access to frontier AI tools, according to an OpenAI announcement. UNSW Sydney, University of Sydney, La Trobe University and Adelaide University are among the institutions establishing these collaborations.
Students are using AI in clinical simulations, robot-assisted teacher training and industry-connected projects, OpenAI said. The universities are also developing frameworks for AI use in learning and assessment.
A survey of more than 1,000 Australian university students commissioned by OpenAI found that 81% already use AI several times a week, with 33% using it multiple times daily. Over a quarter (28%) reported building an AI agent or assistant to help manage their studies, work or personal life.
Four out of five students (79%) want their university to offer more opportunities to use advanced AI tools on real-world projects, according to the survey. The same proportion expressed interest in applying AI to challenges in health, climate, science or cybersecurity.
Sixty-one percent of surveyed students believe AI skills will be essential to success in their chosen career, while 69% believe AI literacy will become as fundamental as digital literacy, writing or numeracy.