2026 Summer Institute

Course Details

• Format: Hybrid
  • Online: July 2-20, Asynchronous
  • In-person: July 20-24, 2026 | 9AM – 4PM
• Location: UBC Vancouver
• Instructor: Sam McCready and Jen Jenson

Course Description

Intelligence has always been an artificial construct, and no more so than when being used to refer to what is now broadly defined and organized as “artificial intelligence” (AI). First coined by John McCarthy in the 1950s, AI refers to a machine or algorithm that simulates human intelligence. Machines can, sort of, mimic human intelligence, but not without a whole lot of human input (think meta and training data). In fact, so much human input is used in these “artificially intelligent” systems that Kate Crawford convincingly argues such systems are “neither artificial nor intelligent,” and comments extensively on wider social structures and systems of power that are in flux as AI encroaches upon and disrupts existing political, economic, social, and educational frameworks (Crawford, 2021).

In 2026, few people in industrialized nations will not have heard of generative AI (Gen AI) and its uses for creating content (Chat GPT, Co-Pilot, Gemini, images [Dalle-E], and music [AVIA], for example). In this course, we will explore Gen AI from the form it is in as of July 2026: its application/s, uses, biases, and blind spots. Taking an exploratory approach, we will examine how GenAI is used in our everyday realities, whether at home, school, or work, with a view to understanding the affordances and limitations of GenAI for learning and teaching. GenAI is already coming to dominate information and media spaces – our task is to understand what this means now and in the near future.

Positive visions of AI futures for education (or automation, or institutional efficiency) that are often uncritical are at this point well-rehearsed and offer little in the way of a point of entry aimed at better understanding what GenAI does, what it costs, and why it matters. In this course, we will take a critical view, examining the sustainability of AI, including the costs to power a single search, the resources it takes to maintain AI, as well as the human costs of “training” GenAI. Readings will include general and politically nuanced accounts of “AI”, as well as specific readings on its use/s in education, medicine, and business. Students will be invited to explore potential applications, challenges and ethical considerations of using Gen AI in educational contexts, as well as the wider technological, ethical, social, and political implications of Gen AI use.

Want to learn more? Email: Samuel.McCready@ubc.ca and/or Jennifer.Jenson@ubc.ca

Registration

MET Summer Institutes are 3-credit courses, and you can register for them in the same way that you register for other MET courses.

For the first time MET is offering spaces to Alumni in its Summer Institute. If you are a MET alum, please contact met.support@ubc.ca to find out how to register and pay for our AI Summer Institute.