Florida International University (FIU) Business hosted its inaugural AI 305 Conference on September 12, highlighting Miami’s emergence as a center for artificial intelligence and technology. The event brought together industry leaders from companies such as Meta, Amazon Web Services, and Google, along with academic experts, to discuss the impact of AI across sectors including business, healthcare, hospitality, and education.
Karlene Cousins, chair of FIU Business’s Department of Information Systems and co-chair of the conference, said the event was designed to spotlight South Florida’s growing role in artificial intelligence while providing students with practical experiences and direct access to industry innovators. “Our students are the AI natives, and we want them to leave here inspired and prepared to lead in this AI-driven economy,” Cousins said.
Carrie Sanchez, assistant teaching professor of information systems and business analytics and conference co-chair, emphasized the collaborative nature of the event. “AI 305 is more than a conference. It’s a celebration of collaboration,” Sanchez said. “By bringing together industry partners, local restaurants, FIU’s colleges, faculty, staff, and our wider community, we’re not just discussing artificial intelligence, we’re building the ecosystem that will shape its future and ensure that innovation benefits everyone.”
The conference featured demonstrations from various FIU departments. Attendees saw robots and drones from the Applied Research Center at the College of Engineering and Computing; AI-powered healthcare tools sponsored by the College of Medicine; and even a cocktail created using artificial intelligence from the Bacardi Center of Excellence at the Chaplin School of Hospitality.
In her keynote address, President Jeanette M. Núñez outlined FIU’s commitment to becoming an “AI-first institution.” She stated: “We stand at the forefront of one of the most transformative eras in human history, the age of artificial intelligence. The future is right now as we’re seeing it play out in real time. It’s changing the way we work, the way we learn, the way we heal, and even the way we imagine what’s possible.”
Panels during the sold-out event explored topics such as workforce readiness for an AI-driven economy as well as infrastructure needs and ethical considerations related to artificial intelligence.
Andy Luc (MIS ’08), global head of core infrastructure and reporting for trust and safety at Google, discussed how generative AI is used alongside traditional machine learning algorithms to detect policy violations within Google products. “Traditional machine learning algorithms identify policy violating activity, and then we also have human experts,” Luc explained. “Now with Gen AI, we see that the bad actors are now doing things at scale so we have to meet them where they are.”
President Núñez also highlighted ongoing university research projects involving hurricane damage detection technologies as well as diagnostic initiatives for Alzheimer’s disease and pediatric cancer. Partnerships with Baptist Health and Nicklaus Children’s Hospital were noted among these efforts.
“We must leverage AI in our research in ways that are ethical, trustworthy and groundbreaking,” Núñez said. “At FIU, we’re committed to ensuring students not only embrace AI as a tool of the present but also develop the critical thinking skills to lead responsibly in the AI era.”
FIU Business recently launched its AI360° initiative which integrates artificial intelligence into research activities as well as undergraduate- and graduate-level programs focused on business analytics and health informatics.
The next edition of AI 305 Conference is scheduled for September 18, 2026.
