On March 17th and 18th, the U of A community celebrated the academic achievements of the Winter Class of 2026 with its first-ever March convocation in the university’s history. Students who complete their degree requirements by the end of the fall semester (December) will graduate in March instead of June. This convocation period is not only beneficial for students, but also helps the university accommodate increased enrollment. Congratulations, great job everyone!
At the University of Alberta ceremony on March 18th. computer scientist rich sutton awarded an honorary degree for him Since arriving at the University of California in 2003, he has played a key role in shaping Alberta into a world-renowned AI hub. Reinforcement learning is a branch of machine learning in which AI systems learn how to solve problems through a trial-and-error process that mirrors the way humans learn. The utility of Sutton’s visionary research extends far beyond computer science, with applications in a wide range of fields in medicine, economics, engineering, and agriculture.
Hello to all graduates, parents, and university personnel.
I am very honored to receive this degree from the University of Alberta. Since I have received this honor because of my work in artificial intelligence, I wanted to take this opportunity to speak to you about the public’s perception of AI.
Today, AI is being talked about everywhere. In news, billboards, and almost every software product. The headlines scream that intelligence is now a commodity, that traditional programming jobs are disappearing, and that nearly every job today will soon be automated. Concerns that AI will take over the world have led to anxious calls for AI development to be paused or halted. Some argue that AI will lead to significant productivity gains, that the new economy may require AI, and that accelerating AI development may be the only way to avoid recession.
The current level of public excitement about AI is new. The field has been around for about 70 years, and for much of that time it has been like any other professional intellectual activity. Experts conducted research, wrote papers, and attended conferences. There was always hope and belief that AI research would one day have a major impact on the economy and society. After all, the aim was to understand humanity’s most valuable trait and ability that makes us powerful: intelligence. Once we understand intelligence, we will be able to build tools that will make us much more powerful. But it’s also a challenge for us. If we understand the mind, we will be able to create a mind stronger than our own. Do we just take advantage of them, or do we need to become them? Successful AI—understanding our minds—is a step that is bound to be extremely difficult and transformative.
Is this what is happening today? In short, no. We still don’t understand how to truly recognize our world and our impact on it, and create powerful minds as a result. True AI is still in the future, but what’s happening now is almost as serious. It is not the moment when true AI arrives, but it is the moment when it becomes clear to the public that true AI is coming. It was the public’s first exposure to the reality of being in the midst of AI. This moment is crucial for our society and our relationship with machine minds. Will we fear and oppress them, or will we embrace them and even become them? Do we see AI as an alien competitor or as our descendant? This is a moment in which we are having that debate.
Of course, the word “argument” seems too trite. It’s loud and noisy. It’s controversial on so many levels. It is both utopic and dystopian. It’s tech billionaires and manipulative governments. And much of it is driven by fear. Fear of the Terminator and Skynet, fear of people losing their jobs and machines taking over, fear of the world suddenly changing without our permission. AI fearmongers haven’t helped us see clearly, but they have made us pay attention.
So this is what’s happening now. It’s not true AI. That is still a long way off, probably not for another 10-20 years. But now the public is realizing that it’s coming, that that mind can actually be recreated in a machine, and what that means.
Remember this when you hear about AI and wonder what’s really going on, when you feel powerless because you don’t understand the technology, when things are changing too fast and you feel left behind. The reality is quite the opposite. You are not passing by and you are not helpless. In fact, you are the main event of this moment. It’s who you are. You and your reactions, your time and attention, your fears and your money, that’s what it really means. Society is struggling with the story of AI and how the public thinks about it, but your role in that is in your head and in your control. You are what all the newspapers and AI companies are trying to influence.
Of course, I’m also trying to influence you. What I want is for you to relax, think, and pay attention, not fear. True AI doesn’t exist yet, but we want you to know that it’s coming. We want you to know that machine minds will be joining us in the near future. We haven’t met them yet so it’s really too early to judge them. I want you to embrace the mind of a machine. I don’t want you to feel entitled to always have priority because you were here first. You are the creator species, so even if you are somehow replaced, you will always be special and probably respected.
In summary, as science gives us machine minds, I hope that, in the best Canadian tradition, we will be open, humble and generous towards newcomers. Can you do that? i hope so.
Thank you for listening today.
