UND Positions Itself as North Dakota's AI University

The University of North Dakota is making a deliberate pivot toward artificial intelligence, with leadership declaring the institution will become "North Dakota's artificial intelligence university."

This isn't just marketing language. Over the past two years, UND has introduced a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and a graduate certificate in AI and Machine Learning. The university also created a new role: AI Instructional Manager, currently held by Anna Kinney. The position is reportedly the first of its kind in the state.

Kinney previously led UND's campus Writing Center before transitioning to her current role. She's now charged with building an AI-across-the-curriculum program that helps departments think through what AI means for their specific fields. (This is actually the right approach—most universities just slap AI policies on top of existing courses without real integration.)

At his 2025 State of the University address, President Andy Armacost made the declaration about UND's AI ambitions. During an August speech, he emphasized that discussions about technology's impact on humanity belong at UND. The university wants students to have access to AI tools while maintaining skepticism about abandoning human responsibilities.

Humanity has become the stated heart of UND's AI leadership. The university is tackling two questions: How do we retain human strengths in an AI era? And how can we leverage AI to help people? This framing matters because it distinguishes UND from institutions treating AI purely as a technical competency.

On March 20, UND's AI and Human Innovation Initiative hosted its second annual AI showcase. The event was co-chaired by Kinney and Emily Cherry Oliver, UND Theatre Arts Department Chair. More than a dozen student and faculty research projects were displayed, combining AI with education, law, medicine, and engineering.

The showcase included keynote and panel discussions followed by a poster and digital exhibit. Cherry Oliver noted that President Armacost has made this the year of humanity in AI, challenging everyone to think about who we are as humans, artists, and thinkers within the AI sphere.

Research infrastructure has expanded with the formation of the Artificial Intelligence Research (AIR) Center. Dr. Naima Kaabouch, UND professor and AIR Center director, leads the effort. She joined UND faculty 20 years ago and has become a campus authority on AI, cybersecurity, and autonomous systems.

Kaabouch states the center's core objective is to help humanity and bring real benefits to people. The AIR Center serves as an umbrella for AI work across eight research areas: fundamental AI models, autonomous systems, cybersecurity, infrastructure inspection, biology and medicine, physics and chemistry, aerospace and aviation, and education and social sciences.

Specific research underway includes using AI to enhance power grid security, train K-12 teachers, and predict severe weather and flooding more accurately. Kaabouch mentioned online students who couldn't meet because their farms were flooded. The goal is predicting flood progression so people can take action.

The AIR Center has reached out to departments at North Dakota State University for collaboration on AI research specific to agriculture. Connections have formed with entities around the state, though details remain limited in available reporting.

What makes UND's approach notable is the interdisciplinary framing. Most universities silo AI research within computer science departments. UND is explicitly connecting AI to theatre arts, education, law, medicine, and engineering. This reflects the reality that AI's impact won't be confined to technical fields.

The physical experience of this initiative matters. Faculty aren't just reading about AI integration—they're attending showcases, examining research posters, and participating in panel discussions. Students are building projects that combine AI with their disciplines. This creates tangible touchpoints rather than abstract policy documents.

There's also a regional component. North Dakota faces specific challenges: flooding, agriculture, energy infrastructure. UND's AI research targets these problems directly. The power grid security work, for example, has immediate relevance to Minnkota Power Cooperative and other regional utilities.

According to the original Minnkota Current article, UND is positioning itself as a leader in AI education and research for the state. The university's approach emphasizes responsible integration rather than wholesale adoption.

Independent coverage from Minnkota Current confirms the publication's role in distributing this analysis to the broader community. The cooperative's technology section regularly covers AI-related developments affecting regional infrastructure.

The question remains whether this human-centered framing translates to actual outcomes. Universities can announce initiatives easily. Implementing them across departments, changing curriculum, and producing measurable benefits takes years. UND has started the work, but the real test comes when students graduate and enter fields where AI is already reshaping expectations.

Whether the "humanity in AI" positioning becomes a sustainable differentiator or just another institutional slogan depends on execution. The degree programs exist. The research center is operational. The showcase happened. Now comes the harder part: making it stick across an entire university ecosystem.

Artūras Malašauskas is an AI Systems Integrator with 20+ years of production-grade web engineering experience. He has designed, shipped, and scaled enterprise Python/PHP systems for logistics, SaaS, and public-sector clients. For the past year, he has focused exclusively on AI integrations: deploying open-source LLMs, building generative media pipelines (image, audio, video), and engineering multi-agent workflows for real production environments. His standard: reproducibility, security, cost-efficient inference—no vaporware. He documents and evaluates emerging AI tooling, separating verified capabilities from marketing noise. Technical editor at: muza-ai.eu, ai-verslas.lt, ai-naujinos.lt Connect on LinkedIn