In just a few short years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has evolved from concept to practical tool, transforming numerous fields including higher education. With increasing availability of AI tools to assist with productivity, planning, writing, research and data analysis applications, UW Bioengineering faculty are actively exploring ways to integrate these technologies into their toolboxes.

The 2024 UW Bioengineering impact report highlighted how faculty members are incorporating AI in their classrooms and research, a trend that continues to evolve just as AI tools are advancing. Faculty are increasingly leveraging AI to streamline work, enhance research and help students understand and effectively use these powerful tools.

Several faculty members are taking structured approaches to learning about AI applications in education. Professor Wendy Thomas participates in a monthly peer-learning group called ‘AI in Engineering Education,’ a College of Engineering initiative coordinated by the Office for the Advancement of Engineering Teaching and Learning and facilitated by Ken Yasuhara, director of the Office for the Advancement of Engineering Teaching & Learning.  These hybrid discussions provide a forum for faculty to share AI challenges and solutions, with a recent meeting focusing on developing course policies for student use of generative AI.

“My big takeaway from the discussion was to think about your course learning objectives and use them to guide student use of AI,” Thomas explains. “The learning objectives must be addressed in the course policies.” Thomas actively involves students in determining appropriate AI usage guidelines, fostering buy-in and clearer understanding. “AI can assist with peripheral tasks like grammar checking and can directly support learning through activities like literature searches or ideation. However, it should never replace the student’s own critical thinking or learning on the competencies being assessed.”

UW Bioengineering organized an AI writing workshop to expand faculty knowledge. The workshop was coordinated by Patrick Boyle, associate chair for operations, and taught by Ellen Kuwana, a science writer with expertise in AI applications in academic contexts. The course, “Tools for Crafting Scientific Materials: From Literature Searches to Writing and Editing,” attracted over 30 core, adjunct and affiliate faculty members. Ray Monnat, UW Bioengineering Lab Medicine/Pathology, Genome Sciences professor and Bioengineering adjunct faculty professor, found the workshop particularly valuable, noting, “Ellen Kuwana’s talk was an excellent overview of the flood of useful new AI-enabled writing tools. Her use of many concrete examples and discussion of appropriate uses and cautions were much appreciated.”

In the classroom, AI applications are becoming more diverse. Thomas uses AI to help summarize student responses to polls in her courses, giving students visibility into their peers’ thinking while providing Thomas with better insights into students’ knowledge and preferences. Other Bioengineering faculty members, like Lecturer Dean Pettit, are directly addressing AI through curriculum, teaching a course called “AI Applications for Bioengineers” which includes bringing in experts from across the university and industry as guest lecturers.

Professor Herbert Sauro’s lab is developing specialized AI agents that translate complex biological models into accessible knowledge by making use of state-of-the-art open-source large language models. These tools streamline research by synthesizing scientific literature and serve as educational resources, allowing students to grasp key concepts without wading through countless related papers. Sauro, together with Joe Hellerstein, senior data science fellow and research scientist at the UW eScience Institute, will teach this technology in a Systems Biology class in the fall for seniors and graduates.  “The class uses a mixture of AI techniques and mechanistic modeling approaches,” Sauro explained, “integrating computational methods with biological understanding.”

The UW offers numerous resources to support faculty and students in navigating this evolving landscape. Boyle is a member of the Institute for Medical Data Science faculty taskforce, advancing innovative cross-disciplinary applications of AI and data science for healthcare. He also served on the steering committee that organized the 2025 annual symposium. He and colleagues, Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering Associate Professor Elizabeth Nance and Dean Pettit, are also affiliates of the eSciences Institute, which Boyle describes as “a go-to hub on campus for all things data research.”

“The eSciences institute is a rich and vibrant scholarly community with specific goals in mind that dovetail beautifully with our mission,” Boyle says. “Being able to tap into that community can be really valuable for postdocs focused on data science who work with a team that does predominantly wet lab research. It can provide a valuable home away from home for these trainees.”

Additional university-wide resources include the AI Task Force, overseen by the provost’s office, which creates proposals for AI use across university activities and community partnerships. The Responsible AI Systems and Experiences (RAISE) program within the UW Office of Research offers AI and data science expertise and guidance to researchers, building fair, ethical tech solutions that promote equal access to information and opportunities.

As AI technology continues to advance, UW Bioengineering faculty are positioning themselves at the forefront of responsible integration, ensuring these powerful tools enhance rather than replace the critical thinking and analytical skills central to bioengineering education.