University of Nevada-Reno
NV · AI Readiness #149 of 227
AIREDEX™ Score: 6.1 /10
Nevada-Reno launched PACK AI in August 2025, requiring every incoming student to complete an AI ethics and policy module, issuing AI-enabled iPads to all freshmen, and opening an interdisciplinary AI minor to students across every major.
UNR undergrads gain immediate access to Apple Intelligence on university-issued iPads through the Digital Wolf Pack Initiative, plus institution-wide Microsoft Copilot Chat. The AI minor, housed in Engineering but open to all students, pairs with a Nevada Online three-course AI certificate. Faculty development runs through the Advancements in Teaching Excellence Program workshops and an AI Literacy Microlearning Series. On the research side, the BRAIN Core facility, directed by Alireza Tavakkoli, and the DOD-funded CREDIT+ center led by Hao Xu anchor active AI work, supported by the Pronghorn HPC cluster and an NSF-funded A100 GPU array open to all students.
Pillar grades
- Commitment: C
- Curriculum: B-
- Partnerships: C-
- Research: B+
A(I)ttitude™: neutral
Selected Highlights
- PACK AI initiative (launched August 2025) functions as a de facto institutional AI strategy with stated goals, governance commitments, ethical guidelines, and named programs including NevadaFIT module, AI minor, Nevada Online certificate, and faculty workshops.
- BRAIN Core (Bridge to Research in AI and Neurocomputing), directed by Dr. Alireza Tavakkoli, is a named cross-disciplinary core facility drawing from CSE and neuroscience with active funded projects; UNR also participates as academic partner in NSF AI Institute for Dynamic Systems.
- Undergraduate AI minor is open to all students university-wide, not restricted to CS/engineering majors.
- Pack Prompt-A-Thon event engages teams from every college in responsible AI use, bias detection, and hallucination identification -- cross-campus ethics programming with documented 2025-2026 activity.
- Apple Intelligence deployed on university-issued iPads (Digital Wolf Pack Initiative) to all incoming freshmen and transfer students -- a non-Microsoft qualifying tool with a dedicated program page and confirmed student access.