Generative AI such as ChatGPT, Google Bard, Bing Chat, and Meta (as well as many others) have developed at a feverish pace in 2023 and will continue to quickly evolve in 2024; this is backed up by views from The Economist, Forbes, Standford, Bloomberg (Kite-Powell, 2023; Lynch, 2023; Metz, 2023; Pascual, 2023). Nextgov/FCW, a technologies and news media organization, has even directly expressed that "As impressive as 2023 was for the development of AI, and specifically generative AI, all of that will pale in comparison to what happens next" (Breeden, 2023, para. 3).
We must go into 2024 understanding that generative AI will continually enhance and so we must be proactive as opposed to reactive. We are all in this together and no one can fully keep up, but we can maintain an open mindset, continue with our life-long learning, and stay as current as possible by reading articles, watching videos, and working to stay abreast of ongoing AI developments. A great way of doing this is by extrapolating from current developments and projecting what might most likely occur in the near future. In light of this, here are my AI in education predictions for 2024 (think about these and reflect, do you agree/disagree, share your thoughts and explain why):
Prediction 1: A massive amount of education research will begin to be published dealing with real students using generative AI in teaching and learning. Now that we will of had generative AI available to use for a full year, multiple research will come out expressing observations and students phenomenological experiences. This will be interesting and enlightening but won't give us the full picture. This will provide us information with students exposed to this AI for one year, but that will of course be different for future students that will grow up with AI being always available. 2024 AI education research will still be very valuable but ongoing research in this new continually developing field will be vital.
Prediction 2: Wearable AI will become a major new and growing development. In addition to Meta's Ray-Bans with embedded AI (Meta, 2023), more AI wearables will come out and become popular. Examples of competing AI wearables are Hu.ma.ne AI pin, $699 (https://hu.ma.ne) and the Rewind Pendant, $59 (https://www.rewind.ai/pendant) as well as many others (AIM, 2023). The power of these devices is that people will now be able to instantly interact with their AI's since it will be always on and always with them, hands free. Imagine students now able to simply say something like "Hey Meta, answer this question for me" at any time, anywhere.
Prediction 3: AI integration into robots will rapidly take off in 2024 as robotic capabilities continues to improve. Advanced generative AI combined with highly capable robots will translate to new robots being offered for business and domestic utilization in many different ways. The ever improving Tesla bot: Optimus (Bennett, 2023) as well as many other humanoid robots such Moxi (https://moxierobot.com) will be advancing and become available to everyone. Additionally, another type of robot, autonomous vehicles, will finally gain full federal approval with enhanced safety controls and capabilities. This means that we will all be able to simply ride in a vehicle and do work or watch entertainment while an AI drives us to our destination. Tesla is leading the way in this field and will accomplish revolutionary things with this (https://www.tesla.com/support/autopilot). Might this pave the ways for faster integration of AI enabled robots in the classroom? See a special video on this "AI Robots in Education" (https://youtu.be/lTqMRUzKQL0).
Prediction 4: More generative AI models will become available to everyone. In addition to the popular AI's that we are familiar with (ChatGPT, Bard, Meta, Bing) many additional generative AIs will appear as different countries and organizations release their versions. Opensource competitors and educational institutions will also release different AI offerings. This will happen for another year or two and then many AIs will merge until we are left with just a few competitors.
Concerns
Given the continued acceptance, use, and development in generative AI, society will be affected in many different ways as these predictions materialize. We in academia must consider the ethical implications, physical/environmental effects, and over reliance aspects of these developments. Importance of ongoing AI Literacy must be recognized by all of us so that we can continue to develop these skills within us in order to develop these must have skills in our students (AI Literacy Skills: Awareness, Capabilities. Knowledge, and Critical Thinking). Together we can make a future that will improve not only teaching and learning specifically, but society in general.
For an accompanying video dealing with the contents of this article please see my educational YouTube video: AI in Education Predictions for 2024 and 1 Year Review
What are your thoughts and predictions with AI in education in 2024?
References:
AIM. (2023). Top 7 smart warables powered by generative AI. Analytics India Magazine. https://analyticsindiamag.com/top-7-smart-wearables-powered-by-generative-ai/
Bennett, C. (2023, December 13). Elon Musk hits back at critics with impressive new Tesla Bot video. The Street. https://www.thestreet.com/technology/elon-musk-hits-back-at-critics-with-impressive-new-tesla-bot-video
Breeden, J. (2023, December 27). Technologies are moving ahead at warp speed. Nextgov/FCW. https://www.nextgov.com/ideas/2023/12/3-government-and-technology-predictions-2024/392998
Kite-Powell, J. (2023, December 29). How some experts see the future of AI in 2024. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferkitepowell/2023/12/29/how-some-experts-see-the-future-of-ai-in-2024
Lynch, S. (2023, December 8). What to expect in AI in 2024. Human Centered Artificial Intelligence. https://hai.stanford.edu/news/what-expect-ai-2024
Meta. (2023). Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. Meta. https://www.meta.com/smart-glasses
Metz, L. (2023, December 29). The year ahead in AI: More powerful tools, a little less hype. Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-12-28/ai-2024-predictions-more-powerful-tools-a-little-less-hype
Pascual, M. (2023, November 13). Generative AI will go mainstream in 2024. The Economist. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferkitepowell/2023/12/29/how-some-experts-see-the-future-of-ai-in-2024