{"id":2000013784,"date":"2025-08-19T09:21:17","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T15:21:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/oit\/?p=2000013784"},"modified":"2025-08-25T08:44:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T14:44:10","slug":"boise-state-launches-secure-ai-service-to-support-learning-and-innovation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/oit\/2025\/08\/19\/boise-state-launches-secure-ai-service-to-support-learning-and-innovation\/","title":{"rendered":"Boise State launches secure AI service to support learning and innovation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Office of Information Technology (OIT) is pleased to announce the initial launch of boisestate.ai, a secure and university-supported generative AI platform designed to enhance teaching, learning, and work at Boise State.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Students, faculty, and staff now have the option to use boisestate.ai alongside Google Gemini, and a limited number of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/genai\/ai-tools\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ChatGPT Edu licenses<\/a> are available to faculty and staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">OIT will continue to refine and enhance boisestate.ai\u2019s functionality and performance based on feedback and usage, ensuring it meets the evolving needs of our campus community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-an-ai-platform-designed-for-higher-education\">An AI platform designed for higher education<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Built on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and governed by Boise State\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/policy\/generative-artificial-intelligence-ai-use-and-policies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">data and policy standards<\/a>, boisestate.ai provides access to powerful AI tools for all students, faculty, and staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">boisestate.ai features a range of leading AI models, including Claude (Anthropic) for advanced reasoning and analysis, LLaMA (Meta) for creative and coding support, and Nova (AWS) for a secure, powerful platform designed to support the entire university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">boisestate.ai was designed with education in mind. Students can use boisestate.ai for research, writing, studying, and career planning. Faculty can leverage it for course design, assessments, feedback, and research support. Staff will find value in using the tools for documentation, communication, and process automation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Key features of boisestate.ai include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Custom \u201cAssistants\u201d for tailored tasks and academic needs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Secure sharing of AI conversations between users<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Integration with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.semanticscholar.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Semantic Scholar<\/a> for academic research<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Structured playbooks for guided AI use<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FERPA and university data policy compliance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-from-pilot-to-platform\">From pilot to platform<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">boisestate.ai was shaped by open-source roots and real-world feedback. OIT started with an open-source project developed by Vanderbilt University, and used that foundation as a launchpad to adapt and improve the platform for the specific needs of our Boise State community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Over the course of the pilot phase, nearly 200 students, faculty, and staff actively explored boisestate.ai, sending more than 10,000 queries and messages as they tested features and capacities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The pilot group\u2019s feedback was critical in helping shape the direction of the platform. Key improvements included:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>A simplified interface:<\/strong> Clean design, larger fonts, and Boise State-branded light\/dark modes provide a more welcoming experience.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Streamlined model selection: <\/strong>You can choose a preferred AI model, but the option is subtle, which keeps things approachable for new users.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Smarter conversation storage:<\/strong> \u201cStar\u201d your favorite chats to pin them to the top of your history for quick access.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Easy sharing: <\/strong>Share chat sessions via link with anyone at Boise State, or make them accessible to all boisestate.ai users.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Custom instructions for Assistants:<\/strong> Set system-level behavior to tailor how Assistants interact.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-access-and-long-term-sustainability\">Access and long-term sustainability<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unlike commercial AI subscriptions, boisestate.ai ensures that all members of the campus community have access to the same tools, with no additional cost to the individual or department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Estimates suggest that subscribing to commercial AI tools for the entire university could cost more than $7 million per year. By creating its own platform, Boise State retains flexibility and avoids vendor lock-in while controlling costs and data privacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-getting-started-with-boisestate-ai\">Getting started with boisestate.ai<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-playbooks\">Playbooks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To help users begin their AI journey, the platform offers student and faculty playbooks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Playbooks are easy-to-follow guides that cover common use cases like writing, studying, course design, teaching practices, and more. These resources are available directly within boisestate.ai and are designed to support our campus community at every experience level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-access-boisestate-ai\">Access boisestate.ai<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To start exploring, sign in today at <a href=\"https:\/\/boisestate.ai\/\">boisestate.ai<\/a> with your Boise State username and password.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Additional learning resources are available at <a href=\"https:\/\/talk.boisestate.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">talk.boisestate.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More information about boisestate.ai is available on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/genai\/\">boisestate.edu\/genai\/<\/a> website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Office of Information Technology (OIT) is pleased to announce the initial launch of boisestate.ai,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":2000013788,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2000013784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.2 (Yoast SEO v28.2) - 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