Senior leaders from across the EUTOPIA University Alliance – a dynamic network of ten European universities and six global partners – gathered on Tuesday (1 July) to discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with innovation and AI in higher education.
As part of EUTOPIA Week 2025's theme of Creating Global Connections, representatives from the University of Warwick, Arizona State University, NOVA University Lisbon, and Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and led by industry expert John Higgins CBE, detailed best practice on how AI should support teaching, learning, and research.
Warwick's Chief Information & Transformation Officer, Raja-Saleem Javaid, delivered the opening keynote, outlining how AI provides opportunities to improve the student and staff experience with new models of learning, research discovery, and global collaboration.
Raja-Saleem Javaid, Chief Information & Transformation Officer, University of Warwick, said:
"At the University of Warwick, we're taking a strategic and responsible approach to AI, embedding it to personalise education, accelerate research, optimise operations, and unlock new forms of innovation.
"AI offers extraordinary potential for higher education, but no institution can navigate this transformation alone. That's why partnerships like EUTOPIA are so important, enabling us to collaborate across borders, share ideas, and shape an AI-powered future that reflects our shared values and ambition."
AI's possibility to transform university research and commercialisation was presented by Dr Tim Hart, Director of Warwick Innovations. Dr Hart showcased global examples of AI research conducted in higher education transitioning into cutting-edge commercial impact, as well as the focus of university and business partnerships at the Warwick Innovation District.
Led by AI industry expert, John Higgins CBE, a panel of university leaders addressed the theme of 'Innovation, Universities and AI'. Participants discussed how the EUTOPIA alliance provides a collaborative framework to support ambitions to be a global higher education leader in AI adoption.
John Higgins CBE, Chairman of the Global Digital Foundation, said:
"In making progress with AI and higher education, the value of sharing best practice is clear. That was a core theme of our discussions, it was immediately apparent from the interactions and questions from all the contributors.
"Collaboration is particularly important in this rapidly evolving field of AI and this once again demonstrated the value of the EUTOPIA alliance."
Panellists for the discussion on 'Innovation, Universities and AI' were:
- John Higgins CBE (chair)
- Professor Pieter Ballon (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
- Francesco Maria Colacino (University of Warwick)
- Professor Brian MacCraith (Arizona State University)
- Professor Isabel Rocha (NOVA University Lisbon)
Panel examples of AI use in higher education included a training tool for medical students to simulate doctor-patient diagnostic conversations, a first contact point for general student queries, and data analysis for research.
Across the panel there was consensus for the need of an interdisciplinary approach to AI and the necessity for global partnerships to harness the best uses of AI in higher education.
The University of Warwick is supporting AI skills development through our MSc Applied Artificial Intelligence programme at Warwick Manufacturing Group and our undergraduate Computer Science module on AI.
Through the EUTOPIA University Alliance, the common goal is to drive forward closer collaboration, foster interdisciplinary dialogue, and create opportunities for students and academics to connect across borders – including implementing AI to help shape universities of the future.
