About
The launch of GPT-3 by OpenAI in November 2022 marked a significant milestone in the democratization of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to the general public. The rapid adoption - 100 million people in two months - has driven major tech companies into a frenzied competition, each seeking to develop ever more advanced and specialized language models.
In response to this development and aware of its impact, the University of Geneva (UNIGE) chose to be proactive and adapt rather than resist. On July 6, 2023, the rectorate issued an official position and established an evolving framework for the use of these technologies. This framework is accompanied by recommendations and support measures. Quickly, resources were made available to teachers and students.
Generative AI has the potential to revolutionize administrative processes by optimizing repetitive tasks and redefining workload management. UNIGE has also recognized the need to support administrative and technical staff (PAT) in adopting online tools to avoid uneven skill development and potential resistance to change.
A working group, formed in July 2023 and composed of members from the Digital Transformation Office (DTO) and the Division of Information and Communication Systems and Technologies (DiSTIC), was mandated to identify the most relevant applications of online generative AI tools and to design strategies for their integration by the administration.
To compile this document, the DTO conducted several interviews (35) with representatives of various professions within UNIGE to understand their needs and target the concrete applications of generative AI. These interviews were complemented by discussions with experts and a review of the literature on generative AIs. Additionally, generative AI tools (e.g., GPT-4) were used to assist in drafting the results and guides.
The drafting of this guide gradually took a cross-disciplinary form, moving away from the usual job-specific categorization, which was inadequate for such tools. Therefore, it was decided to publish it for the entire community.