What began as a tool to help students at California State University campuses stay on track – artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots quickly became a lifeline to many students isolated due to the pandemic. After hearing of a similar program at Georgia State University- Elizabeth Adams, Associate Vice President of Undergraduate Studies at Cal State Northbridge applied for a grant to help students at California State Universities excel at the school both on an academic and personal level. According to Adams the AI chatbots were created with freshmen and transfer students in mind as well as students who are the first in their families to go to college. “It's especially appealing to first-generation students because they don't always know what questions to ask or who to ask them to, and they don't like being embarrassed about it," Adams noted.

In an article by InformationWeek back in 2018, Sr. Data Scientist Sophie Searcy stated, “Given the critical role data scientists play in how data is used (or misused), it’s imperative that we fairly represent everyone impacted by our work, which is to say, all of us. In order to ensure that this happens, the data science industry must be absolutely committed to hiring and developing diverse talent.” She went on to state, “when blacks make up 13% of the US population but represent just 1% of hires at our leading tech companies (look no further than Google and Amazon for examples), something’s wrong.”