Why SUTD teaches AI as a mindset, not just a tool

Long before AI became mainstream, the university began redesigning its curriculum to help students collaborate with intelligent systems, grounded in human-centred design and the social sciences. Advertisement Advertorial Why SUTD teaches AI as a mindset, not just a tool Long before AI became mainstream, the university began redesigning its curriculum to help students collaborate with intelligent systems, grounded in human-centred design and the social sciences. ObstaX Mini, a lightweight AI-powered wearable created by students at Singapore University of Technology and Design, supports visually impaired users through scene and object recognition. (Photos: SUTD) New: You can now listen to articles. This audio is generated by an AI tool. Brand Studio Brand Studio 25 Feb 2026 09:05AM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Brought to you by Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST In 2017, a programme titled Future of Work and Innovation was launched at the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), following findings from the National Research Foundation-funded Future of Cities study by the university’s Lee Kuan Yew Centre for Innovative Cities. That study predicted that artificial intelligence (AI) would disrupt not just certain industries, but all jobs, skills and tasks in the coming decade.“At the time, this ran counter to prevailing consensus,” said Mr Poon King Wang, director of the centre and founder of the project. “But given what we see today, it turned out to be prescient.”Rather than viewing the rise of AI as a crisis, Mr Poon saw an opportunity to explore how machine intelligence could be combined with human insight to empower – rather than displace ­– people at work. This perspective would later inform SUTD’s vision of being the world’s first Design AI university. SUTD integrates design, technology and AI to address real-world challenges. Instead of preparing students for a narrow set of technical skills that risk becoming obsolete, SUTD began developing strategies to help them create value in an AI-shaped landscape. Mr Poon, who is also chief strategy and design AI officer at SUTD’s Office of Strategic Planning, said this approach has guided many of the university’s initiatives over the past year.A key emphasis is teaching AI as a mindset, rather than just a collection of tools. “In a toolset, you pick the right tool and perform the task yourself. This is only as effective and efficient as you are,” said Mr Poon. “As a mindset, you let AI pick the tools and perform the tasks. This multiplies your effectiveness and efficiency in the same way good teammates make it possible to achieve so much more.” Inspired by the autorotating descent of a maple seed, the airXeed radiosonde, developed by SUTD researchers, harnesses nature’s design for sustainable atmospheric data collection. WORKING WITH AI, NOT AROUND ITAt SUTD, students are trained to design with people in mind. Foundational courses such as AI Fluency introduce undergraduates to viewing AI as a creative collaborator and innovation catalyst, helping them accelerate the development of human-centred solutions.Early outcomes suggest the approach is resonating. After completing the course, 75 per cent of undergraduates said AI could enhance their critical and creative thinking, while 90 per cent reported a clearer understanding of AI’s strengths and limitations, as well as how it could be incorporated meaningfully into their work.A strong interdisciplinary grounding in the social sciences underpins this approach. Across all majors, up to 20 per cent of SUTD’s undergraduate curriculum consists of humanities, arts and social sciences subjects, equipping students to work on real-world problems with a deeper understanding of human behaviour and social contexts.This year, the university is enhancing its Design and Artificial Intelligence (DAI) degree with two new tracks. Designed for students with strong interests in the social sciences alongside proficiency in mathematics and the sciences, the tracks broaden exposure to domains such as economics, business, finance, psychology, philosophy and human-AI interaction.Mr Joshua Cheng, an SUTD Year 2 DAI student, said he was excited about the changes taking place in the evolution of the degree. “This enhanced DAI programme lets us take charge of our future with AI. These days, it is not just about what is technically possible – it is about what is actually worth building, and for whom,” he said. “By leading with humanities thinking, ethics, culture and philosophy, and backing it with technology, we frame problems right from the start and create real impact. The industry masterclasses will keep us sharp and ahead of the curve.”His experience reflects the broader emphasis the university places on the role of the social sciences in AI education. “The social sciences are gateways to understanding peo