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As the largest and most diverse university in Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., �������� is leading the future of inclusive artificial intelligence (AI) and developing responsible models for AI research, education, workforce development, and community engagement within a modern university.

As AI reshapes industries, George Mason combines fearless ideas that harness the technology’s boundless potential to address the world’s grand challenges, while creating guardrails based on informed, transdisciplinary research around ethical governance, regulatory oversight, and social impact.

Led by the university’s inaugural vice president and chief artificial intelligence officer (CAIO) Amarda Shehu with an AI Visioning Task Force, George Mason is reimagining operational excellence in every facet of the university.

AI infrastructures are a national security and human safety issue, Mason professor says

Through his Minerva Project, J.P. Singh, , wants to understand “how preferences or interests from society, business, or other government actors shape policy in terms of what countries are doing with their national AI infrastructures.”

Learn more about J.P. Singh's Minerva Project

Inspire AI: designing curriculum for the future workforce

George Mason is equipping students with AI skills as a leader in developing AI-ready talent ready to compete and new ideas for critical sectors like cybersecurity, public health, and government.  In the classroom, the university is developing courses and curriculums to better prepare our students for a rapidly changing world. 

In Spring of 2025, the university launched a cross-disciplinary graduate course, AI: Ethics, Policy, and Society. In Fall 2025, the university is debuting a new undergraduate course open to all students, AI4All: Understanding and Building Artificial Intelligence. A master's in , a (fall 2025), an for undergraduates of all majors, and a  are more examples of Mason’s mission to innovate AI education. New academies are also in development. 

READ: George Mason launches Virginia’s first public master’s degree in AI 
 

Impact AI: driving community engagement and adoption

George Mason is tackling the world’s most urgent challenges with a purpose and vision for societal change. The university’s is a partnership between academia, public-sector tech providers, and government. It is a trusted resource for advancing AI approaches, governance frameworks, and robust guardrails to guide the development and deployment of responsible AI in government. Leading experts and faculty also participate in statewide efforts.

George Mason collaborates with other universities across the country to bring together experts and students to advance research. Gentopia, with North Carolina State University, ��������, and Carnegie Mellon University, aims to push the boundaries of natural language processing. Gentopia lets researchers develop and share tool-augmented natural language models and discover new ways of using them for various tasks and domains.

Learn about integrating AI (artificial intelligence) into your work through the AI in Autumn event series on the Fairfax �������� in the Johnson Center:

AI Assistant Demo: Monday, Sept. 29, at noon. Instructors will learn how to use an AI assistant to enhance instruction and support student outcomes.

AI Policy at Work – What we wrote, what It means: Tuesday, Oct. 7, at 2 p.m. The AI Visioning Task Force subgroup on research guidelines will provide an overview of George Mason's Guiding Principles for using AI in research. Fairfax ��������, Johnson Center, 326 Meeting Room B | Contact: jthurst4@gmu.edu

New AI Community of Practice: Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 2 p.m. Are you experimenting with AI in your daily work as a George Mason staff member? Join a new AI community of practice for non-instructional staff. Grow in your AI literacy and help design this community. Fairfax ��������, Johnson Center, 326 Meeting Room B | Contact: nfoley3@gmu.edu

Patriot AI Show and Tell: Nov. 4, 2 p.m., Fairfax ��������, Johnson Center, Room C
Discover basic approaches to using Patriot AI (specifically SyllaBright) to assist in course design. This demo will target the beginner user with little to no AI experience. Contact: bfede@gmu.edu and dschell@gmu.edu 

George Mason launches Virginia’s first public master’s degree in AI

�������� will offer a starting this fall, becoming Virginia’s first public university to offer a stand-alone master’s degree in this field.  

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�������� recently held its inaugural AI in Education for Virginia Summit. The event was the first of its kind, focused on integrating artificial intelligence in education to improve educational outcomes, enhance learning experiences, and shape the future of education in Virginia.

The in-person event featured presentations from industry experts and statewide leaders on the transformative potential of AI in education. Attendees learned from their peers in dynamic and engaging presentations from educators, researchers, and students showcasing innovative uses of AI in the classroom and beyond.

The PatriotAI platform represents the first major outcome of our strategic partnership with Microsoft and Cloudforce, established earlier this year to begin a meaningful and thoughtful integration of artificial intelligence capabilities into university operations, starting with targeted academic and student services. 

• PatriotChat, a general-purpose conversational assistant for everyone at George Mason. Ask PatriotChat just about anything and get reliable and insightful answers while ensuring your privacy and security. 
• DocuMate, a scholarly document analysis assistant for everyone at George Mason, is designed to summarize documents, extract their key concepts, help formulate research questions, and conduct cross-document analyses.
• PatriotPal, a virtual assistant for students, providing accurate and helpful information about administrative procedures, academic policies, and student services at George Mason. 
• NourishNet, a resource connector for student food insecurity that offers compassionate guidance on food access programs, whether on campus or in the community, all while maintaining a stigma-free experience. 
• CourseMate, a student learning assistant that helps students understand lecture content, analyze research articles, interpret textbook materials, and prepare for exams. 
• SyllaBright, a course design assistant that helps faculty develop and refine educational materials including syllabi, learning objectives, planning assessments, and adapting content for multilingual contexts. 

As we expand AI access across our community, we have established guiding principles for the safe use of these technologies, with specific guidance for instructors, researchers, students, and staff currently in development. We are committed to providing these tools in a manner that ensures data privacy and security while supporting our diverse community.