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AI-Enabled Software & Tools
We've rounded up pre-approved tools that offer enhanced, generative-AI functionality for a variety of academic and business uses. From individual to enterprise use, these included (free) or add-on licensed services are designed to help reduce barriers and enhance the Sacramento State experience, and have been vetted through the Information & Communication Technology (ICT) process to align with campus data privacy and security standards.
And remember, beyond the built-in security and privacy features of these tools, it's the responsibility of every Hornet to never input sensitive data into any generative AI application. Connect with the IRT Information Security Office for consultation and support.
Categories
- Free Options: Prioritize using the included AI-enhanced features (free within your campus account such as Zoom or M365) which covers most regular use cases and still provides a robust experience without the need for special licensing.
- Licensed Tools: Enterprise licensing is managed through IRT and is available on a requested and prioritized basis (e.g. work that impacts student success, for accessibility needs, or that supports critical operations). Contact the IRT Service Desk team to discuss availability. Note: University units may purchase additional licenses, but only IRT can offer discounted licensing agreements.
Microsoft Copilot Varieties
Who wouldn't love a personal assistant? There are a few varieties of Microsoft's Copilot tool - some free, some with enterprise or licensed use for specific audience groups. All of the varieties have the same capacity as ChatGPT 4 and may be used for classroom, research, and administrative purposes.
Ready for take off? LinkedIn Learning offers helpful how-to resources to help you get started:
Coming soon! We're hard at work on an enterprise chatbot offering powered through Microsoft Azure OpenAI which is set to transform the Hornet experience.
| Software | Features | Audiences | License/Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Copilot (with Data Protection) | Standalone app accessed via browser (Microsoft Bing, Edge or directly to copilot.microsoft.com); sign in with Sac State credentials. | Faculty, Staff & Students | Free/Included |
| Microsoft Office 365 Copilot | Integrated personal assistant within M365 apps such as Word, Teams, Excel. | Faculty & Staff | $30/mo. |
| Microsoft Copilot Studio | Extends Microsoft Copilot capabilities to build custom copilots/chatbots. | Faculty & Staff | Coming soon |
| Microsoft Azure OpenAI enterprise with Zammo.ai | GPT access through Azure/development environment to build custom chatbots. | Coming soon | Coming soon |
Zoom AI Companion
Available Summer 2024!
From A to Zoom - the Zoom AI Companion is your built-in virtual assistant within your Sacramento State Zoom account. It uses machine learning to understand your meetings, enhance your experience, and help you be more productive.
How to Use It
Zoom AI Companion is already integrated into your Sac State Zoom account. First enable the features in Zoom, then check out these helpful articles to learn how to use them:
- How to Use Zoom AI In-Meeting
- How to Use Recording Highlights with Zoom AI Companion
- How to Use Smart Chapters
- How to Access Zoom AI Summaries
| Software | Features | Audiences | License/Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoom AI Companion | Meeting Summaries: Automatically captures key points discussed with or without a recording, saving time and ensuring nothing gets missed. Smart Recordings: When cloud recording is enabled, Zoom AI Companion analyzes the recording to provide chapters based on topics, highlight key takeaways, and identify action items. Meeting Questions (Host Feature): Allow participants to ask Zoom AI Companion questions about the meeting in real-time, catching up on missed points or getting quick clarifications. Note: Zoom does not use any audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments, or other communications-like content (such as poll results, whiteboards, and reactions) to train Zoom’s or third-party AI models. |
Faculty, Staff & Students | Free/Included |
Otter.ai
Let Otter.ai take your meeting notes and be more productive! This tool makes it possible to get transcripts, automated summaries, and action items from your meetings - plus the ability to chat/ask questions through Otter about specific meeting content.
| Software | Features | Audiences | License/Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Otter.ai | Speech to text transcription application primarily used to support student accessibility needs. | Faculty/Students | Free |
Experimental Tools (Special approval required)
We aim to support AI adoption and leadership, and to facilitate broad experimentation with new technologies. However, for the security of university data, special approval is required for any tools outside the university-supported lineup, such as:
- ChatGPT 4.0
- Claude 3
- Gemini
- Chatbase.ai
- Other third-party providers or free new-to-market tools
Request Review/Approval
While every campus software purchase is required to undergo ICT procurement review there is a different channel for generative AI tools called Experimental/Research ICT Approval. Tools in this category are approved using:
- General ICT requirements;
- An explanation of the specific use cases, outcomes, and procedures for the requested AI tool; and
- Acknowledgement of the following specific conditions:
Experimental/Research ICT Approval Conditions
- Approval is temporary and valid for one year, subject to cancellation or extension.
- Users must agree to comply with the following conditions for all public-facing tools and service:
- Include a disclaimer in every public deployment stating that the tool is experimental and may pose an elevated risk to privacy, as well as a disclaimer that the information is not official and may be inaccurate.
- Refrain from asking the end user for personally identifiable data.
- For custom bot training, use only documents and data already publicly accessible on the university Website (csus.edu).
- Opt out of keeping logs or perform manual weekly log deletion. Logs maybe saved for analysis on One Drive or Network drive.
- Provide a direct link to alternative human-powered services if accessibility features are missing or inadequate.
- Assume personal responsibility for at least annual retraining of custom bots and similar tools, delete and remove public links to discontinued tools.
- Tool owners must report on any issues and user experiences at the end of the year for evaluation and consideration of permanent approval or termination.
Unsupported Tools
If you choose to use an unsupported AI software tool (or bolt-on outside of university-supported options):
- You are solely responsible for the use and impacts of that tool.
- No campus-based IT support (through IRT or an area ITC) will be provided in the implementation or administration of an unsupported AI software tool.