The Evolution of AI Discourse and Methodology

To understand how AI evolved from a specialized technology into a mainstream societal force, Dr. Kiprop and his research team utilized Python to extract public transcripts, performing rigorous corpus statistics, lexical analysis, and thematic analysis. The findings revealed a dramatic shift in global discourse:

• 2019–2020 (AI as Infrastructure): The tone was highly optimistic, viewing AI primarily as a specialized educational and tutoring tool.
• 2021–2022 (AI as Enhancement): The discourse matured into a pragmatic approach, focusing on enhancement.
• 2023–2024 (Generative AI Disruption): Following the widespread release of generative models, the tone shifted to cautious, treating AI as a massive disruptive force.
• 2025–2026 (Institutional Adaptation): Current discussions have adopted a strategic tone, focusing heavily on how institutions must navigate and implement the new AI landscape.

The Four Stakeholder Perspectives

Dr Kiprop explained that as AI becomes a major societal issue, understanding how different groups interpret its impact is critical. The research compared four key stakeholder groups, revealing widely varying priorities:

1. Education Specialists and Learning Experts: Initially optimistic, educators have become highly cautious and strategic. Their primary concerns revolve around students, academic integrity, assessment, and pedagogical support.
2. Industry Leaders and Tech Executives: Maintaining a pragmatic and opportunity-oriented tone, this group focuses on business value, enterprise disruption, workforce skills, and human-AI collaboration.
3. Policy and Research Institutions: Organizations like UNESCO and the OECD have shifted from cautious optimism to action-oriented policy building, focusing heavily on AI governance, ethical frameworks, regulation, and systemic adaptation.
4. AI Creators and Tech Influencers: Representing the fastest adopters, this group is highly enthusiastic. They show the least concern for educational risks and focus heavily on technical capabilities, coding, and entrepreneurial empowerment.

The Liberal Arts Advantage in the AI Era

One of the most dynamic moments of the seminar occurred during the Q&A session, which sparked a debate regarding who truly benefits most from generative AI. While many assume science and engineering students have the upper hand, Dr. Kiprop presented a compelling counter-argument: Liberal Arts students might be the biggest beneficiaries of AI tools.

Historically, Liberal Arts students have excelled in soft skills, such as critical thinking, leadership, and communication, but may have lacked specialized technical skills like coding. Dr. Kiprop believes that generative AI is able to bridges this technical gap. He explained that because complex coding and data analysis are now easily accessible via AI, students with strong communication and critical thinking skills can use AI to execute technical tasks. This makes them incredibly empowered in areas like entrepreneurship, allowing them to seamlessly execute their creative and strategic visions.

Academic Rigor, Student Benefits, and Institutional Impact

For LUJ undergraduate and postgraduate students, engaging in these high-level academic seminars offers profound, real-world developmental benefits. By analyzing how different sectors view artificial intelligence, students gain a strategic understanding of the modern workforce. Addressing questions on how to implement AI in teaching, Dr. Kiprop noted that the tone in education has shifted from resistance to acceptance, meaning the focus must now be on the best strategies for adoption. LUJ’s robust Liberal Arts curriculum ensures that students develop irreplaceable human skills while learning to confidently command AI as a technical tool. This holistic approach ensures that LUJ graduates are not intimidated by technological disruption, but are uniquely equipped to lead the future of human-AI collaboration.

Lakeland University Japan’s Lunch and Learn sessions are open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students.

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Hosting Strathmore University is a product in LUJ’s continued globalization efforts which aim to expand opportunities for students and faculty to a truly international scale and Dr Kiprop expressed his intention that both parties seize the opportunity presented to develop deep bonds for long term academic collaboration. “Given Strathmore University’s strengths in business and entrepreneurship, I believe there are many opportunities for joint innovation activities beyond traditional academic research. “ Dr. Kiprop said, continuing, “Strathmore’s students remarked that they had not expected an international university in Japan to place such importance on Japanese cultural education, and they appreciated how LUJ integrates local culture into the student experience.”

The delegation from Strathmore University was led by Dean of Students, Mr. Paul Ochieng, Senior Lecturer, Dr. Caroline Kariuki, Dr. Titus Orwa, Lecturer from the Strathmore Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Mr. Raymond Ochieng, Lecturer from Strathmore University.

LUJ was proud to include presentations from postgraduate students Mara Peppermuller and Benjamin Emmanuel Aniereobi, who recently won the 2026 LUJ Innovation Challenge, in Association with SusHi Tech 2026, for the presentation of his corporate start-up Rirakkusu Japan.

Dr. Kiprop described how impressed he was with Strathmore University’s experiential learning program, saying “Their students are expected to complete a substantial number of practical hours (approximately 400 hours), many of them in informal settlements and low-income communities. This approach gives students meaningful real-world experience while allowing them to make a tangible impact on society.”

Strathmore University was founded in 1961 as the first educational institution in pre-independence Kenya to accommodate all races, religions, and social standings. Having grown to boast a student population of over 8,000, Strathmore is consistently ranked as one of Kenya’s top private universities and everyone at LUJ extends their thanks to the faculty and staff who travelled so far to join us for a short time in Tokyo!

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