Rice AI Week 2026

Rice AI Week
2026

Rice Voices. Rice Ideas. Rice Values.

Rice AI Week 2026 will take place from October 19 - 23, 2026. AI Week is a cornerstone of Rice’s new WISEOwl Campaign, a yearlong internal initiative supporting the responsible and effective integration of AI across our campus. WISEOwl is built around four commitments:

Work Smarter

Using AI to reduce friction, improve workflows and create more time for meaningful work.

Inform Decisions

Using AI to identify patterns, synthesize information and support stronger judgment, not replace our own.

Safeguard Standards

Protecting our data and privacy, evaluating accuracy and upholding Rice’s ethical, academic and operational expectations.

Empower Service

Using technology to improve how we serve others while preserving the relationships and human connections that define Rice.

Overview

Whether you are an advanced user, a beginner or deliberately designing AI-free classrooms, this week is for you. Across five days of keynotes, panels, and workshops, we will explore practical skill-building and the ethical questions surrounding AI.

Faculty will have opportunities to see how colleagues are rethinking teaching, assessment, research, academic integrity through both cross-curricular and discipline-specific innovations, whether in AI-free or AI-enhanced learning environments.

Staff will be able to explore practical ways AI may optimize workloads, improve services, strengthen communication, and solve real operational challenges across units.

Students will gain in-demand AI skills, explore how AI is reshaping future professions, learn to leverage AI for job and internship searches, and connect with faculty, staff, and peers who are defining the future of learning and research.

There will also be general skills sessions that will cover core AI literacy, including writing prompts, evaluating outputs, protecting privacy, and maintaining the human touch.

Signature AI Experiences

Join top Rice leaders, industry professionals, and special topics for our most anticipated events of the week. Because these sessions feature special guests, hands-on learning, catered networking, or take place in limited-capacity venues, they require their own individual registration.

Seats will fill up fast. Browse our Signature AI Experience options below and RSVP to secure your spot:

General AI Events

Dive into the future of artificial intelligence across campus. With one simple registration, you unlock access to various trainings, workshops, and interactive demo sessions.

With the General AI Event Registration Form, you can:

  • Build your own schedule: Drop in on the sessions that fit your interests and availability.
  • Access 20+ open events: From AI ethics discussions to startup pitch competitions.
  • Register once: Fill out a single form to gain entry to the core Rice AI Week lineup.

Google Sponsored AI Events

We are excited to partner with Google to bring hands-on AI experiences directly to the Rice campus! Whether you are a student looking to boost your productivity or a faculty or staff member exploring new teaching and administrative tools, Google product experts are here to show you how to get the most out of Gemini.

Gemini Pop-Up Event

and , 10 am to 5 pm

In-person (Outside Fondren Library) Registration encouraged

Drive-by style product demos and tips on how students can use the best of Gemini with Rice University email for free! Students will get FREE GEMINI MERCH and meet current Google representatives. Win a chance to be featured on Google's social channels! We'll be doing some casual onsite interviews. Come for the fun, stay for Google Gemini.

Registration link: https://rsvp.withgoogle.com/events/gemini-campus-rice-f26

Take Rice AI Week With You

Your schedule. Your sessions. AI Week at your fingertips.

Make the most of Rice AI Week 2026 with the Rice AI Week mobile app.

Use the app throughout the week to explore sessions, view event details, keep track of your schedule, check registration status, access locations and online-session information, and quickly find what’s happening next.

For the best experience, add the app to your phone’s Home Screen. There is no App Store or Google Play download required.

Open the Rice AI Week App

Add Rice AI Week to Your iPhone or iPad

  1. Open the Rice AI Week App using Safari.
  2. Tap the Share button at the bottom of Safari.
  3. Scroll down and select Add to Home Screen.
  4. Tap Add.
  5. The Rice AI Week icon will now appear on your Home Screen like an app.

Tip: Use Safari when installing the app on an iPhone or iPad.

Add Rice AI Week to Your Android Device

  1. Open the Rice AI Week App using Chrome.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner.
  3. Select Add to Home screen or Install app.
  4. Follow the prompts to confirm.
  5. The Rice AI Week icon will appear with your other apps.

What You Can Do in the App

  1. Use the Rice AI Week App to:
    • Explore AI Week sessions by day, audience, and topic.
    • View session details, including times, locations, and descriptions.
    • Register for available sessions directly from the session listing.
    • Keep track of your registrations and waitlist status.
    • Access your personalized schedule after signing in.
    • Find online-session information for sessions you are registered to attend.
    • Check the app throughout the week for the most current event information.

Already Registered?

  1. Sign in using the same email address you used when registering for AI Week. This allows the app to connect you with your registrations and personalized schedule.
  2. If you register for additional sessions, your schedule may take a few minutes to update.

Keep Rice AI Week Close

  1. Add the app to your Home Screen before AI Week begins, and use it throughout the week as your mobile guide to sessions, schedules, locations, and registration information.
Open the Rice AI Week App

Student AI Community of Practice

Students and audience members taking part in a panel discussion at Rice University.

Join the AI Student Community of Practice: This newly launched, collaborative community is for students across all majors to share practical use cases, explore Rice’s AI tools and engage in critical conversations about technology.

Complete the AI Student CoP Registration Form if you’re interested in joining!

Contact Us

Questions? Feedback? Email us at responsibleai@rice.edu.

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