Universities and AI: Insights from the IAU Global Survey at UNESCO’s Digital Learning Week 2025
Trine Jensen, Manager of Higher Education and Digital Transformation, represented the IAU at UNESCO’s Digital Learning Week 2025. This year’s conference was themed around ‘AI and the future of education: Disruptions, dilemmas and directions’, which took place from the 2nd to the 5th of September at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France. Contributing to the conference theme, Trine shared insights from the 2nd IAU Global Survey on Digital Transformations focused on AI and Open Science. 430 institutional replies from 125 countries offered global perspectives regarding policies and governance, staff and faculty, students and ethical considerations.
The identified challenges included:
Accuracy and reliability of AI generated content
Varying degrees of AI literacy
Potential over-reliance on AI
Uncertainty regarding learning outcomes
Plagiarism and misconduct
While opportunities presented as:
Gained efficiencies in administration
Customized learning experiences
Efficient creation of high-quality pedagogical materials
Support for research
These findings contributed to the ongoing conversations on the responsible integration of AI in higher education with other leaders in the field who actively participated in this session. Concluding her presentation, Trine pointed out three key takeaways of the IAU’s work on generative AI:
AI tools should be steered by purpose rather than by possibilities when deciding to integrate AI in higher education.
Practioners and stakeholders must be aware that developments in AI are likely to widen global inequalities within the higher education sector.
IAU is fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing across institutions and countries to address the above mentioned challenge.
