Future U. Podcast

What if every student had a built-in study companion? Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn that AI could act like: • a TA for every course • a smart academic planner • a personalized study coach The kind of support colleges have long wanted

AI could give every student something universities have never been able to scale: A built-in “study companion.” On Future U, Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn how AI could help students prep for class, check mastery, and stay organized across courses.

The LMS survived two big tech shifts: 📱 Smartphones ☁️ The move to the cloud But it didn’t really change. On Future U, Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn why AI may finally force real innovation in learning platforms. @AscendiumEP

Will AI transform classrooms across entire universities? @jselingo is skeptical. He says governance, training gaps, and uneven adoption across faculty make large-scale change difficult. Instead, AI may spread discipline by discipline — not institution-wide. @AscendiumEP

AI in higher ed may not scale top-down. On Future U, @jselingo suggests adoption could happen by discipline — business, engineering, health — rather than across entire institutions. Governance + training gaps make system-wide change hard. @AscendiumEP

Edtech companies often win over individual professors, but struggle to scale across institutions. On Future U, @jselingo explains why the LMS stayed the “container” — while real learning innovation happened outside it. @AscendiumEP

Why is edtech so hard to scale in higher ed? @jselingo says the problem is structural: Innovation happens at the faculty level — but companies need institutional adoption to grow. So the LMS became the “container”… while real innovation happens outside it. @AscendiumEP

If AI can complete assignments for students, is the real problem the AI — or the course design? Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn that the answer isn’t more AI guardrails in the LMS. It’s rethinking how we assess learning. @AscendiumEP

AI agents completing assignments inside the LMS are raising alarms about cheating. But Matt Pittinsky says the deeper issue is “empty credentialism” -- when the goal becomes the grade instead of learning. The real fix? Better course and assessment design. @AscendiumEP

Will AI improve the LMS — or replace it? Blackboard co-founder Matt Pittinsky says LMS providers face a classic innovator’s dilemma. If they only use AI to make the current system better, they could miss the bigger shift toward personalized learning platforms. @AscendiumEP

What if every student had a built-in study companion? Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn that AI could act like: • a TA for every course • a smart academic planner • a personalized study coach The kind of support colleges have long wanted to provide — but couldn’t scale. @AscendiumEP

AI could give every student something universities have never been able to scale: A built-in “study companion.” On Future U, Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn how AI could help students prep for class, check mastery, and stay organized across courses. @AscendiumEP

The LMS moved to the cloud. It adapted to mobile. But it still largely works the way it did in 1999. Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn why AI could finally change that. @AscendiumEP

The modern tenure system started with a scandal. A Stanford professor criticized powerful railroad interests… and got fired. A colleague resigned in protest and helped launch what became the AAUP. @jselingo and @michaelbhorn discuss the origins of tenure with @berlinerblau. @AscendiumEP

The LMS survived two big tech shifts: 📱 Smartphones ☁️ The move to the cloud But it didn’t really change. On Future U, Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn why AI may finally force real innovation in learning platforms. @AscendiumEP

Tenure traces back to a fight at Stanford in 1900. A professor criticized railroad monopolies. Jane Stanford fired him. The fallout helped spark the creation of the AAUP — and eventually the modern tenure system. @jselingo and @michaelbhorn unpack the story with @berlinerblau on Future U. @AscendiumEP

For 30 years, the LMS has been the digital backbone of college courses. But despite waves of new technology, it hasn’t changed much. @jselingo and @michaelbhorn talk with Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky about whether AI will finally force the LMS to evolve. @AscendiumEP

The LMS survived the smartphone. It survived the cloud. Will it survive AI? Blackboard cofounder Matt Pittinsky joins @jselingo and @michaelbhorn to discuss whether AI could finally transform — or replace — the learning management system. @AscendiumEP

Can tenured professors lose their jobs if a department shuts down? As @berlinerblau explains to @jselingo and @michaelbhorn on Future U, the 1940 tenure framework allows for “economic exigency” — meaning programs can be eliminated if demand or finances collapse. It used to be rare. Not anymore. @AscendiumEP

Tenure protects professors — but not necessarily entire departments. On Future U, @berlinerblau tells @jselingo and @michaelbhorn that universities can eliminate programs for financial or enrollment reasons, even if faculty have tenure. And those cases are becoming more common. @AscendiumEP