New Krantz Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, and Humanity
Boston College will leverage its formative and ethical strengths as a Jesuit, Catholic university to explore the opportunities, implications, and dangers of artificial intelligence through a transformative gift from University Trustee Jason Krantz ’95, P’23 and his wife, Keely (Fitzgerald) Krantz ’95, P’23.
The gift will establish the Krantz Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, and Humanity, which will utilize BC faculty, visiting scholars, and industry partners to examine AI’s long-term opportunities and impact from a humanistic perspective, while instilling BC students with the judgement, wisdom, and critical thinking necessary to help them become ethical leaders in its deployment.
The Krantz Institute will draw from the University’s academic programs in liberal arts, business, education, nursing, law, social work, and theology and ethics to achieve three primary goals. First, the Krantz Institute will convene global thought leaders at Boston College for conferences and symposia to discuss AI and its potential impact on humanity. Second, it will provide fellowships, internships, and experiential learning opportunities for BC students that will enable them to lead conversations that will shape the future of AI, wherever they take place. Third, the Krantz Institute will advance curricular innovation and integration at BC, enhance campus-wide AI-related programs and projects, and award internal seed grants to fund emerging initiatives.
University Trustee Jason Krantz ’95, P’23 and Keely (Fitzgerald) Krantz ’95, P’23. (Caitlin Cunningham)
Robert L. and Judith T. Winston Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley said the gift represents an opportunity for Boston College to respond to the potential and limitations of AI in ways that serve not only BC students, faculty, and researchers, but the global community.
“The establishment of the Krantz Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, and Humanity emerges from a shared sense of urgency—with our donors and among University leaders—that the world needs Boston College to bring the richness of its Jesuit, Catholic heritage and values into a lively engagement with the promise and perils of generative artificial intelligence,” said Quigley.
“Jason and Keely Krantz believe that the University is particularly suited to provide ethical decision-making and humanistic leadership and thinking amid our age of accelerating technological change. I am grateful for their remarkable generosity and look forward to launching the institute that will make clear, across campus and well beyond, that AI's ongoing revolutions require precisely those enduring strengths and resources which lie at the heart of BC's mission-driven approach to formative education.”
“ AI represents one of the most consequential technological transformations in human history. Given Boston College’s commitment to formative education and the Jesuit principles of ethical discernment, BC, in our mind, is uniquely positioned to lead the conversation about the consequences of AI, what the technology means for humanity, and how it might be best leveraged in service to others. ”
The Krantzes said they were inspired to fund the institute to address the humanistic component of AI to ensure that this rapidly evolving technology benefits humanity and the common good.
“AI represents one of the most consequential technological transformations in human history,” said Jason Krantz, founder and executive chairman of Definitive Healthcare and founder of Breachway Capital.
“Given Boston College’s commitment to formative education and the Jesuit principles of ethical discernment, BC, in our mind, is uniquely positioned to lead the conversation about the consequences of AI, what the technology means for humanity, and how it might be best leveraged in service to others.”
Added Keely Krantz, president and founder of the O’Dell Women’s Center in Springfield, Mass., “We want to see values and ethics as foundational components in how the world approaches AI and AI education. Additionally, we want BC students to use their formative education and discernment skills to help lead and improve the application of AI in the future.”
Quigley said the Krantz Institute will be led by an executive director, whom he hopes to hire during the coming academic year, and new faculty and staff who will support the ongoing interdisciplinary work of BC faculty and researchers.
The institute will involve all nine of BC’s schools, with interim leadership assistance from Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory Kalscheur, S.J., and Carroll School of Management John and Linda Powers Family Dean Andrew Boynton.
“In his recently published encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, Pope Leo reminds us that education has a decisive role to play in our time of rapid technological change,” said Fr. Kalscheur. “A Jesuit education strives to form students who will embody a wisdom that joins knowledge and discernment in the vocation of seeking the greater good in all aspects of living.
“The Krantz Institute will enable the University to bring that spirit to the questions raised by artificial intelligence, placing emerging technological possibilities in conversation with the University's commitment to promoting human dignity and serving the common good. This investment makes more widely available our faculty's shared work of inquiry across the disciplines in service of a more just and humane future, and enhances our students' education, helping to form women and men who are not only highly skilled, but also possess sound judgment, careful reflection, and discerning wisdom.”
Added Boynton: “When you combine our enduring motto ‘Ever to Excel’ with the generosity and vision of alumni like Jason and Keely Krantz, Boston College becomes an unstoppable force.
“No one can study the nexus of AI and humanity better than the collection of faculty at BC, embedded in Jesuit, Catholic roots and bolstered by our longstanding tradition of ethical and formative training for our students.”
“ We have an opportunity and responsibility as a university to lead this discussion for the world...The Krantz Institute aspires to be different from anything we have seen in higher education and will help position Boston College to have a global impact on the future of AI. ”
Currently, Boston College enjoys a robust AI ecosystem that will assist it in advancing ethical, human-centered leadership. The University has more than 30 faculty who teach AI-related courses, and 11 faculty with externally funded AI-related research grants from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes for Health, and private foundations. In addition, BC has strong alumni leadership in emerging technology firms from coast to coast, and faculty representation in forums such as the Builders Artificial Intelligence Forum in Rome, which brings together the world’s most consequential voices in artificial intelligence with Catholic Church leaders to shape AI’s future.
In addition, BC routinely brings national and international leaders to campus via its Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics, and hosts an annual Finance Conference through the Carroll School of Management that draws business executives to discuss the crucial issues of the day—both of which will help support the Krantz Institute in its efforts to convene thought leaders on campus.
“Boston College and Boston in general should be the gathering place for discussions where leaders across different fields, including computer scientists, business executives, government leaders, theologians, and ethicists, come together with faculty and students to discuss the impact of this critical technology on the future of humanity,” said Jason Krantz.
Added Keely Krantz, “We have an opportunity and responsibility as a university to lead this discussion for the world about how AI impacts human dignity, justice, and the common good, and how to use this incredible new capability to solve social problems and improve humanity.
“The Krantz Institute aspires to be different from anything we have seen in higher education and will help position Boston College to have a global impact on the future of AI.”