The University of Alabama
AL · AI Readiness #102 of 227
AIREDEX™ Score: 7.3 /10
Alabama became one of the first SEC schools to require all undergraduates to complete a mandatory AI literacy course in Fall 2026, and in November 2025 the Board of Trustees approved a standalone Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence, giving Crimson Tide students both a baseline AI foundation and a full degree option.
The UA AI Experience enrolls every incoming student automatically each semester, covering prompting, ethical use, and data protection in three hours across five online modules, with digital badges awarded on completion. Crimson Tide students can also pursue the new B.S. in Artificial Intelligence housed in the College of Engineering, supported by the Alabama Center for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, which spans seven colleges and is led by Dr. Jiaqi Gong alongside co-directors in physics and social work. A $96 million High Performance Computing and Data Center, funded through $44.5 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce and $46 million from the state, will give students access to petascale computing when it opens in 2027. There's no standalone AI minor or certificate open for enrollment yet; a School of Data Science is planned for 2027.
Pillar grades
- Commitment: B+
- Curriculum: B-
- Partnerships: C
- Research: B+
A(I)ttitude™: neutral
Selected Highlights
- Campuswide AI governance committee produced the June 2026 Generative AI Policy and launched the AI Hub (oit.ua.edu); committee is ongoing with documented public output within past 2 years.
- Multiple institutional AI policy documents confirmed: OAA Generative AI Guidelines (June 2023), formal campuswide Generative AI Policy (June 2026), Strategic Communications AI Guidelines; UA also submitted formal response to White House AI Action Plan RFI (March 2025).
- Total documented AI capital commitment exceeds $98M: $96M HPC/Data Center (NIST $44.5M + Alabama ETF $46M) plus $2M private gift for ALA-AI Center.
- ALA-AI (Alabama Center for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence) confirmed cross-disciplinary with 7 colleges; Director Dr. Jiaqi Gong (CS), Co-Directors Dr. Sergei Gleyzer (Physics) and Dr. Hee Yun Lee (Social Work); launched June 2024.
- Standalone B.S. in Artificial Intelligence approved by Board of Trustees November 7, 2025; 121-credit program housed in College of Engineering/Computer Science.