will.i.am and Michael Crow at ASU+GSV

Founder, multiplatinum artist, and STEAM education advocate will.i.am will join higher education revolutionary Michael Crow for a fireside chat Wednesday on StageX at the ASU+GSV Summit!

Transformational times call for transformative vision — but what does that look like in this new era of Learning at the Speed of Light? How can artificial intelligence accelerate human creativity and ignite innovation? As fierce champions of equal access to the future for ALL and equipping every student to thrive in a tech-centric world, will.i.am and Michael Crow will explore how the intersection of artificial intelligence and human creativity can lead to prolific potential for leaders and learners across “PreK to Gray.”

‍

will.i.am is a creative artist, tech entrepreneur, and the Founder & CEO of FYI.AI, an AI-powered productivity tool for creatives that revolutionizes ideation, collaboration, and production for creative projects. His entrepreneurial spirit in innovation and technology is driven by his philanthropic work encouraging inner-city youth to pursue STEAM fields in preparation for an AI, autonomous, robotic, and highly technical tomorrow. An advocate for lifelong learning, his i.am Angel Foundation funds STEAM education programs for 14,000+ disadvantaged youth in grades K-12 in Los Angeles, including the i.am College Track after-school tutoring center and college scholarship program, the Boyle Heights STEM Magnet High School, and after-school robotics clubs in partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District and FIRST robotics.

A recent graduate of Harvard Business School's Owner/President Management Executive Education Program, will.i.am currently sits on the boards of College Track, FIRST Global, and the Smithsonian Institution Science Education Center’s Ad Hoc Committee For Innovation, and he has been recognized with a TIME100 Impact Award, an Emmy Award, nine Grammy Awards, and the James C. Morgan Global Humanitarian Award, among others.

‍

Recently recognized as part of the 2024 TIME100 Climate list — the first university president to be included — and a recipient of the 2025 Edison Award, Michael Crow is redefining what higher education can achieve in the modern era. In two decades, President Crow has transformed ASU into a powerhouse of student success, innovation, and global impact. From reimagining access to quality higher education with ASU Online, now serving nearly 100,000 students worldwide, to redesigning ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, the largest engineering program in the United States, and forging groundbreaking partnerships with companies like Starbucks and Uber, President Crow’s vision is revolutionary on a global scale. Under his leadership, U.S. News & World Report has named ASU “#1 in innovation” among U.S. universities for an unprecedented 10 years straight — the entire existence of the category.

President Crow has been at the forefront of integrating AI into higher education, ensuring ASU’s AI strategy is principled and agile; the university’s CreateAI platform empowers the ASU community to build and engage with AI-enabled products in a secure environment. ASU also became the first university to collaborate with OpenAI, using ChatGPT Enterprise to transform teaching, research, and operations, setting a new benchmark for AI-powered learning and student success.