Google’s partnership with the Lab has created mutual growth opportunities for students and Google representatives. Students have gained access to Google’s AI Sandbox and opportunities to develop new skills and solve real industry problems with emerging tech solutions.
“As classes have gotten larger, students’ opportunity for hands-on experiential learning have become extremely limited,” Tech Lab Co-Director Kevin Ponto said. “The Lab provides students a space to utilize the skills they have gained in the classroom to solve real-world problems. When paired with Industry partners, these experiences can provide an opportunity to explore innovative spaces that provide benefit all around.
On February 12, Google Head of Customer Engineering for Public Sector US Central Christopher Mende spoke to Tech Lab students on how to approach innovation — focusing on design sprints.
A few weeks later, Google Customer Engineer Kendra Ramick demoed Notebook LM — an AI-powered note-taking research tool developed by Google — to students. Notebook LM was able to create a fully AI-generated podcast based on information on the Tech Lab’s website.
“The lab is unique in that it connects students from across campus with advanced tools and industry mentorship to rapidly prototype and gain essential skills for an increasingly AI-driven world,” said Kristin Storhoff, a State and Local Government Account executive at Google. “It’s exciting to watch entrepreneurial ideas develop, and there is significant value in bringing the best of Google’s AI to support students’ exploration.”
Most recently, on March 21, students and google representatives attended a mixer at the Wisconsin School of Business to exchange ideas and learn from each other on how best to tackle industry problems with technology-based solutions.
“A multidisciplinary lab like ours relies on partnerships like the one we have with Google Cloud,” Tech Lab Co-Director Sandra Bradley said. “Through an AI sandbox, learning modules, and access to Google engineers, students are able to learn and advance ideas in ways they could not otherwise.”
Make sure to RSVP for the Tech Lab’s open house event April 24 to see the final culmination of our student and industry led projects!