TECH 50 — Demystifying AI: Insights from the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence
Quarter: Fall
Instructor(s): Sha Sajadieh
Date(s): Sep 29—Nov 17
Class Recording Available: Yes
Class Meeting Day: Tuesdays
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 6:00—7:30 pm (PT)
Tuition: $590
Refund Deadline: Oct 1
Unit(s): 1
Status: Registration opens Aug 17 8:30 am (PT)
Quarter: Fall
Day: Tuesdays
Duration: 8 weeks
Time: 6:00—7:30 pm (PT)
Date(s): Sep 29—Nov 17
Unit(s): 1
Tuition: $590
Refund Deadline: Oct 1
Instructor(s): Sha Sajadieh
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Recording Available: Yes
Status: Registration opens Aug 17 8:30 am (PT)
Artificial intelligence is advancing rapidly across many domains, including science, business, and public policy. This course offers a data-driven introduction to how AI is evolving globally, grounded in insights from the AI Index report, Stanford HAI’s independent annual assessment of worldwide AI trends.
Students examine how advances in technical performance intersect with investment patterns, workforce transformation, energy use, and emerging governance frameworks. Rather than focusing on speculation, the course emphasizes measurable indicators of where AI adoption is accelerating, where risks and gaps persist, and how institutional and policy choices shape outcomes.
Topics include global investment and compute concentration, labor and productivity effects, safety benchmarks, incidents, and the evolving regulatory landscape across regions. Drawing on data, case studies, and expert perspectives, the course equips participants to critically interpret AI claims and engage thoughtfully with the decisions shaping its future.
Students examine how advances in technical performance intersect with investment patterns, workforce transformation, energy use, and emerging governance frameworks. Rather than focusing on speculation, the course emphasizes measurable indicators of where AI adoption is accelerating, where risks and gaps persist, and how institutional and policy choices shape outcomes.
Topics include global investment and compute concentration, labor and productivity effects, safety benchmarks, incidents, and the evolving regulatory landscape across regions. Drawing on data, case studies, and expert perspectives, the course equips participants to critically interpret AI claims and engage thoughtfully with the decisions shaping its future.
SHA SAJADIEH
AI Index Lead, Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence
Sha Sajadieh leads the AI Index at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI). The Index is a program built on longitudinal frameworks to measure AI's global trajectory. She manages the report's direction and development alongside the AI Index Steering Committee, an interdisciplinary group of experts from across academia and industry. Before joining Stanford HAI, she spent nearly a decade in product leadership roles at companies including Google and Netflix.
Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.