According to a complaint filed by one of the students, Emory discovered no misconduct and was always aware of the Eightball’s workings.
People and businesses are still having trouble figuring out how and how much to use artificial intelligence into their everyday lives. The situation of Emory University, in which the university went from honoring students with an entrepreneurship prize worth $10,000 for their AI-powered studying tool to suspending them for it, is one of the rare instances in which this has been more clearly demonstrated than it is in this particular instance, as reported by 404 Media. No, the students did not suddenly engage in any kind of inappropriate behavior with the tool that is known as Eightball; they performed exactly what they promised they would do, and throughout the entire process, Emory promoted them – until they did not.
Students were able to convert any readings or assignments they had to complete into practice exams or flashcards for the purpose of studying with eightball. Additionally, it was connected to Canvas, which is the network that Emory professors use to communicate course documents with their instructors and students. Eightball was described as being comparable to ChatGPT in a demonstration video. However, it was trained on Canvas courses, and students were able to view anything from lectures to slides. This was in contrast to the situation in which students had to upload each PDF individually to the program.
In November of 2023, the Honor Council of Emory University accused the inventors of Eightball of cheating, plagiarizing, and assisting other students in violating the Honor Code. As a result, the two individuals decided to shut down the program. It was also asserted by the Council that Eightball had connected itself to Canvas without authorization, despite the fact that this was mentioned during the awards competition in the spring of 2023. After conducting an inquiry into the students, the body came to the conclusion that Eightball had not been used to aid in cheating and that the student founders had never lied about the capabilities of the game.
In spite of this, the Honor Council suggested that one of the students, Benjamin Craver, be suspended for a year, while the other student, who had the idea to play Eightball, be permanently expelled. One of the directors of the Council referred to the situation as “unprecedented” because of the potential damage it could inflict to Emory. It was ultimately decided that Craver would be suspended for the summer and autumn semesters of 2024, and after that, he would be required to submit an application for reinstatement. In addition to that, he was forced to finish an educational program and was given a mark that would remain on his permanent record. His co-creator was given a suspension for a period of one year.
On May 20, Craver filed a complaint against Emory, in which he detailed the reasons behind the creation of Eightball, including the endorsement and usage of the game by teachers, articles that promoted the game in the campus newspaper, and the fact that students had always been open about their use of the game. Words of encouragement from the assistant dean of Emory’s business school regarding Eightball following the award and her decision to connect the students with an outside entrepreneur who is an Emory alumnus are included in the complaint, along with other pieces of evidence. “While nothing about Eightball changed, Emory’s view of Eightball changed dramatically,” assert the plaintiffs in Craver’s lawsuit. The fact that there is no evidence that anyone has ever utilized Eightball to cheat is something even Emory acknowledges. Additionally, Emory continues to promote Eightball as a model of student ingenuity and entrepreneurialism up to this day.