Stanford CS 153 draws big tech CEOs and goes viral on X

In short: Stanford’s computer science class CS 153 has become a campus and social media sensation because it brings in famous tech CEOs as guest speakers.

What's going on

Stanford is running a computer science class this semester called CS 153 that has drawn unusual attention. According to WIRED, people around campus have started calling it “AI Coachella,” comparing it to the music festival because of its high-profile lineup.

Instead of bands, the class features guest talks from well-known leaders in the tech industry. These are the kinds of executives who run large companies that build and sell AI products. AI, or artificial intelligence, is software that can write, summarize, and answer questions, a bit like a very fast assistant that learned from reading a huge amount of text.

The class has also gone viral, meaning people are rapidly sharing and talking about it online. WIRED reports that the buzz is happening both in Palo Alto and on X, the social app formerly known as Twitter.

Not everyone is happy about the attention. Some people are criticizing the class and what it represents, including the way universities and the tech industry are closely tied when it comes to AI.

What to watch

It is worth watching whether Stanford, and other schools, keep leaning into celebrity-style guest speakers for AI classes. Another question is whether public criticism changes how these classes are promoted, who gets invited, and how the benefits and downsides of AI are discussed in the classroom.

Source: Wired