Debate: In the Age of AI, Will Universities Become Obsolete?

This two-part debate brings students and faculty into dialogue about the evolving role of higher education in the AI era. Students will lead an Oxford-style debate exploring whether universities risk obsolescence as autonomous systems expand. The closing session will feature faculty in response to the students’ arguments, reflecting on how universities can adapt and lead. A primary challenge to uncover in this two-part program isn’t the disappearance of universities, but their need for reinvention: integrating AI into learning practices while maintaining the social, ethical, and developmental roles that machines cannot (and may never) fill. Students from the Columbia Debate Society led the debate: Edgar Cheng, Undergraduate student, Financial Economics, Columbia College (‘28) Mukudzeiishe Madzivire, Undergraduate student, Political Science and Government, Minor in Human Rights, Columbia College (‘27) Albert Shore, Undergraduate student, Economics, Political Science, Columbia College (‘28) Emma Listgarten, Undergraduate student, Political Science and Environmental Science, Barnard College (‘27) Faculty Facilitator: Matthew Connelly, Professor History and Vice-Dean for AI Initiatives, Arts & Sciences, Columbia University These remarks were part of the Reimagining Teaching and Learning in the Age of AI: An AI and Education Forum, held at Columbia University on March 4, 2026. For more information, visit: https://edblogs.columbia.edu/ctl3/abo...