Advice for 2026 commencement speakers: Don't bring up AI

Commencement ceremonies at Glendale Community College experienced problems as graduates walked across the stage to receive diplomas. Wrong names were read aloud, and some graduates were not read at all. The college president said a new AI system was being used as the reader, which led to boos from the audience. The college later blamed technical issues and apologized to students. Similar reactions occurred at other universities where commencement speakers described AI as revolutionary or as a tool that rewrites production. Real estate executive Gloria Caulfield, record executive Scott Borschetta, and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt all faced booing after making AI-related remarks. Many graduates have mixed experiences with AI, including use for business and cheating, contributing to skepticism toward celebratory AI messaging.

"Glendale Community College's commencement ceremonies hit a snag just as students were walking across the stage to get their diplomas last week. The wrong names were being read aloud at the ceremony, just outside Phoenix. Some of the graduates' names didn't even get read. The college's president, Tiffany Hernandez, tried to explain the problem. "We're using a new AI system as our reader," she said, leading to loud boos from the audience. (In a statement, the college blamed technical issues and said it had apologized to students for the experience.)"

"Other commencement speakers who have brought up the sweeping changes that artificial intelligence is driving are also facing boos from the Class of 2026. Real estate executive Gloria Caulfield described AI to the graduating class of the University of Central Florida on May 8 as "the next industrial revolution." The boos started almost immediately. "OK, I struck a chord," said Caulfield. Graduating students at Middle Tennessee State University booed when record executive Scott Borschetta told them at their May 9 commencement ceremony, "AI is rewriting production as we sit here.""

"Borschetta responded to the boos with: "Deal with it. Like I said, it's a tool." As the booing continued, he added, "Then do something about it. It's a tool. Make it work for you." Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt was repeatedly booed by University of Arizona graduates at their commencement on May 15, including when he said, "The question is not whether AI will shape the world. It will. The question is whether you will help shape artificial intelligence.""

"ChatGPT was released in 2022, when many of this year's undergraduates were just starting college. Many have embraced AI for good and for ill, whether to build businesses or use it to cheat. But despite or perhaps because of - those experiences, many graduates feel those boos are justified. "I think my gut reaction was I would"

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