Collaborative Brain Trust CBT · AI Strategy Program
Welcome to AI Foundations

Let's get you up to speed on AI.

A short, self-paced program built for higher-education leaders - no technical background required. Start with the five-minute welcome video, then work through the eight modules at your own pace. By the end, you'll understand what's actually happening in AI and be ready to help shape your institution's path forward.

8 modules About 70 minutes Self-paced
Welcome & Overview Captions available
What to expect

No tech jargon and no pressure. Just clarity.

Go at your own pace

Start, pause, and pick back up whenever it suits you. Nothing is timed and nothing is graded.

Written for the curious

You don't need a technical background. Every idea is explained in plain language, from the ground up.

Short, focused modules

Most run five to ten minutes. Watch one over coffee, or move through several in a sitting.

Your learning path

Eight modules, start to finish.

You've met us in the welcome video above - the program itself begins here. New modules unlock as we release them, and you'll be notified when each is ready.

  1. 01

    The 5-Layer AI Cake

    Gain access

    A plain-English look at how modern AI is built - from the chips up - so the headlines finally make sense.

    9 min
  2. 02

    Large Language Models

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    The technology behind ChatGPT and Claude, explained simply - what a large language model actually is, how it learns from mountains of text to predict what comes next, and why it can sound so confident yet still get things wrong.

    9 min
  3. 03

    The 5 AI Races

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    The global contest shaping AI - talent, compute, models, adoption, and sovereignty - and why it matters for higher ed.

    10 min
  4. 04

    AI Governance

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    What responsible AI looks like on campus: policy, academic integrity, data, and who owns the decisions.

    9 min
  5. 05

    AI in the Classroom

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    How AI is reshaping teaching, learning, and assessment - and how great educators are responding with confidence.

    9 min
  6. 06

    Agents & Workflows

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    Beyond chatbots: how AI is beginning to carry out real, multi-step work - and what that unlocks for your teams.

    8 min
  7. 07

    The Future of Work

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    What AI means for jobs, skills, and the people you serve - sorting durable shifts from passing hype.

    9 min
  8. 08

    Humanoid Robots & Physical AI

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    AI steps off the screen and into the physical world. A grounded look at where this is all heading.

    9 min
A note before you begin
There's no pressure to become an expert. By the end of this program, you'll simply be ready to take part in the conversation about your institution's future with AI.
- Your CBT team