University of Memphis President Dr. Bill Hardgrave presented at the inaugural AI Tennessee Summit in Nashville at the historic Country Music Hall of Fame.
His presentation titled, “Tennessee’s AI University: Advancing the Frontier of AI in Tennessee for Over 30 Years,” delved into the University’s history leading AI through education past, present and future.
“University of Memphis faculty have been driving leading-edge research in the area of data science and intelligent systems for more than 30 years,” Hardgrave noted. “Across our faculty alone, the University of Memphis has been cited over 134,000 times in research for AI and Machine Learning.”
This accounts to roughly 15% of faculty at the UofM who are engaged in AI and machine learning research.
This is evidenced through worked that began in the 1970s with the late Dr. Stan Franklin in the Department of Mathematical Sciences, who worked on models that simulated how the human mind works, psychologically. Franklin along with Dr. Art Graesser established the Institute for Intelligent Systems in 1985. Today the center serves its mission as a collaboration hub advancing research, education and innovation in language, learning and AI through impactful partnerships with regional, national and international communities.
Other notable centers at the University include the Center for Information Assurance (CfIA) — a designated Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education and Research — led by Hill Professor in Cybersecurity and Director Dr. Dipankar Dasgupta.
The newly formed Center for Emerging Technologies in Artificial Intelligence (CERTAIN) which is addressing how to reduce obstacles to implementation of AI in education, industry and government with a particular focus on manufacturing, logistics, healthcare and software development. In addition, the AI for Health Research (AIHR) Lab will allow the University to further invest in advancing AI in health outcomes with a focus on substance use disorders.
Hardgrave noted that the University’s location on the Western side of the state as part of the “Digital Delta” is seeing accelerated growth for AI Data Centers in the country which include Google, xAI, and 5C Data Centers Inc and this makes it even more imperative that the University continues to accelerate innovation and investment toward AI research in teaching.
Last year, the University launched a new academic unit, The Polytechnic@UofM, to address this need. The Polytechnic@UofM will expand the University’s applied technology degree portfolio and reduce barriers to entry toward attaining a bachelor’s degree through electives that can be used toward transfer credit or credit for experiences outside of the classroom.
Last Fall semester, the University launched the AI for All Minor which is equipping students — regardless of their chosen majors — skills and knowledge to be able to successfully integrate AI into their field of study and future careers. And in Fall 2026 the new Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) will be available with concentrations in manufacturing supervision, construction leadership and information technology.
Further driving alignment with national priorities, the University has also set up an AI Task Force, and future AI Speaker Series and AI Cyber Summits are on the horizon.
The summit was hosted by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in collaboration with the University of Memphis, Tennessee AI Advisory Council, SCORE, Vanderbilt University, the Oak Ridge National Lab, and the Tennessee Board of Regents. Those present included leaders from the government, industry and academia sectors to identify how the state could establish itself among the nation in regard to AI.
Photos by Steven Bridges/University of Tennessee
