A.I. robot to give D'Youville commencement speech

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- As students get ready to step into the future, D'Youville University is giving them a taste of tomorrow with its commencement speaker -- an artificial intelligence robot named Sophia.

The school announced Wednesday that this year's speaker, a "social humanoid robot" created by a Dallas robotics company, will engage in an "interview-style discussion" with Student Government Association president John Rizk.

“I use AI every day, multiple times a day,” Rizk said. “I am much more productive and organized having AI in my pocket to help me with daily tasks. A.I. to me is what the calculator was to my parents. I’m excited to interview Sophia and help affirm AI is not going away, and that my generation needs to figure out how to appropriately deal with it.”

D'Youville has been working to spread awareness of virtual reality and A.I. after launching its MetaReady program in 2022. This offers every first-year student a Meta Oculus "for delivering asynchronous developmental and academic programming through," according to a news release.

Other efforts at promoting A.I. and virtual reality include the D'Youville Health Professions HUB's simulation center and a recent staff competition to apply A.I. into daily work.

“Our students will be the future of healthcare delivery," said Dr. Lorrie Clemo, university president. "As we move to put our lives in their hands, D’Youville University hopes to ensure all students understand technology and can think critically about the future they build for us."

D'Youville's commencement ceremony will take place May 11 at the LECOM Harborcenter.