AI News & Events
We've compiled some recent happenings relating to AI. If you've come across a great article or resource, let us know so that we can add it. For Recent News, scroll to the bottom of this page to find a newsfeed of articles relating to AI and educaiton.
From President's Weekly Perspective (March 31, 2025):
AI: It’s Here, It’s Evolving, and It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science
In the latest episode of It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science, UNM’s own Leo Lo dives into how AI is quietly shaping our daily lives—from iPhones to spreadsheets—often without us even noticing. With 450 million monthly users on ChatGPT and global debates around AI regulation heating up, this week’s episode, "Keeping up with Artifical Intelligence," explores the risks, rewards, and what Artificial General Intelligence could mean for the future. Dean Lo’s take? AI might free us from some of the boring stuff, so we can focus on what matters most. It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science is available wherever you get your podcasts.
Selected News:
Musk's xAI updates Grok chatbot after 'white genoicde' comments
Reuters, May 16 2025
Musk's xAI blames 'unautheroized' tweak for 'white genocide' posts
France24, May 17 2025
Musk's AI Grok bot rants about 'white genocide' in South Africa in unrelatedchats
The Guardian, May 14 2025
The Professors Are Using ChatGPT, and Some Students Aren't Happy About It
The New Yorks Times, May 17 2025
National Catholic Educational Association to Highlight Artificial Intellgience
Catholic News Agency, April 22 2025
NSF Cancels Over 400 Grants Covering Disinformation, Deepfakes and STEM Education
NextGov, April 22 2025
6 EdTech AI Treads: How Artificial Intelligence is Reshaping Education
Amazon Web Services, April 21 2025
AI: The New Aesthetics of Fascism
New Socialist, February 9, 2025
New Mexico Schools Use AI to Track Student Absences
Government Technology, January 13, 2025
AI may soon help detect wildfires in New Mexico
KOB 4, December 9, 2024
Seeing the future: How a New Mexico start-up is testing AI for detecting eye disease
KRQE, April 30, 2024
Legislation:
January 29 2025 - HB 0215 No Use of AI for Rent Manipulation Act Introduced to New Mexico Legislature
Introduced by Andrea Romero and Angelica Rubio, this House Bill 0215 borught forward in "relating to property; enacting a new section of the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act; prohibiting the use of Artifical Intellgience to manipulate rent pricing."
Full PDF of HB 0215 found here.
January 9 2025 - HB 60 Artifical Intelligence Act Introduced to New Mexico Legislature
Introduced by Christine Chandler, Andra Romero, Debra M. Sariñana, Linda M. Trujillo, and Heather Berghmans, this House Bill 0060 brought forward in "relating to artifical intelligence; enacting the Artifical Intelligence Act; requiring notice of use, deocumentation of systems, disclosure of algorithmic discrimination risk and rick incidents; requiring risk management policies and impact assessments; providing for enforcement by the State Department of Jusice and civil actions by consumers for injunctive or declaratory relief."
Full PDF of HB 0060 found here.
Past Events
An Update on AI from the US Copyright Office (March 21, 10:00am-11:00am MST, 12:00pm-1:00pm EST via Zoom)
Join for a special Discussion Series Event with Chris Weston, Senior Counsel for Policy and International Affairs, US Copyright Office, who will be presenting OSCO policies concerning AI and summarizing Open Copyright Education Advisory Network's recent studies. Register here.
Chris Weston is counsel in the Office of Policy and International Affairs of the US Copyright Office. Chris has many years of domestic copyright law and policy experience, including authoring the Office's 2017 Discussion Document on the section 108 exception for libraries and archives, and co-authoring Office stuides pre-1972 sound recording and orphan works and mass digitization. He has also working extensively on joint Copyright Office-Library of Congress Office in 2008, after working at the Library of Congress, primarily with the Section 108 Study Group. He graduate cum laude from the Georgetown University Law Cetner in 2001, and has a B.A. from Wesleyan Unniversity. Prior to his legal career he spent six years in the music industry.
17th Annual Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies Graduate Student Conference (March 7-8, 2025)
The 17th annual Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies Graduate Student Conference at the University of New Mexico invites graduate students to examine the manner in which networks of power, visibility, and technicity shape contemporary forms of social organization, ideological formations, and cultural narratives. Specifically the following presentations:
Panel II. Technologies of Knowing, Saturday March 8th, 1:00pm-2:30pm
Student Union Building (SUB) Acoma & Fiesta meeting rooms
Gender Bias in Generative AI: Discursive, Cultural, and Ideological Perspective
Elliot Jackson, University of New Mexico
Questions Concerning Teleology in Artificial Intelligence
Arlo O'Blaney, University of New Mexico
Keynote Presentation, Saturday March 8th, 3:00pm-4:00pm SUB Acoma
Machine Learning and the Crisis of Decision
David Bates, University of California, Berkeley
AI in Research (February 28, 12:30pm-2pm via Zoom)
Join Computer Science Professor Melanie Moses and Research IT Manager Grace Faustino for a discussion about the current state of AI in Research (as opposed to research on AI). They will talk about best practices when using existing tools, some of the potential pitfalls, and where things stand in terms of policies around AI in research and research administration at UNM and federally. They will also demo an AI tool or two and will invite attendees to test them out in real time during the session.
Open to all UNM faculty. Register here.
