Author: IBL News

IBL News | New York

SUNY’s four university centers at Stony Brook, Buffalo, Albany, and Binghamton will participate in the Empire AI campus partnership to advance AI research, professional development for faculty and students, and microcredential courses. These universities will partner with several technology and community colleges

This campus partnership, which will leverage the Empire AI academic supercomputer housed at the SUNY at Buffalo, seeks to ensure that AI is used effectively and ethically for students and faculty and, overall, for the public good.

SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. said that his institution “is leveraging the largest statewide comprehensive system of public higher education in the country to ensure that more students are able to drive research and move innovation forward.”

“By bringing together SUNY institutions through these campus partnerships, we are furthering the use of AI for the public good and shaping a brighter future for all New Yorkers,” said New York Governor Kathy Hochul in announcing the partnerships on January 30. “Through Empire AI, New York is ensuring the power of AI is harnessed responsibly.”

Empire AI is Governor Hochul’s nationwide-leading initiative to advance AI research for the public good, led by an independent consortium. It is backed by more than $500 million in public and private funding and comprises 10 member universities and research institutions, including the University of Rochester, the Rochester Institute of Technology, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

These institutions joined the seven founding members of Empire AI: SUNY, CUNY, Columbia University, Cornell University, NYU, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the Flatiron Institute.

In her 2026 State of the State agenda, Hochul proposed the launch of Empire AI Beta, which will accelerate Empire AI’s performance to 11 times its former scale, making it the world’s most advanced academic supercomputer.

IBL News | Philadelphia

1EdTech CEO Curtiss Barnes announced the CASE Global Ecosystem initiative during the 2026 Digital Credentials Summit, with plans to launch later this year.

“We’re currently seeing a true national and global push for clearer pathways between education and employment, and for learner mobility across institutions, sectors, and borders,” he said.

Currently, micro credentials, skills, competencies, and curriculum data remain siloed across platforms, frameworks, and jurisdictions. Meanwhile, employers need records they can trust and understand instantly.

When introducing the CASE standard as a shared technical and semantic foundation, the 1EdTech organization aims to create an open, decentralized, and globally coordinated system that enables the interoperable exchange of skills, competencies, and curricula.

Tim Couper, Chief Architect & Associate CTO, 1EdTech, stated to IBL News, “The CASE standard has become a foundational solution worldwide, and combined with other standards like Open Badges and Comprehensive Learner Records (CLR), is making credentials more trusted across systems.”

Today, more than 37 million Americans have completed some college coursework but no degree, creating an enormous wage gap and economic disadvantage.

People with some college but no degree face a $40,500 annual wage gap (86% less) than bachelor’s degree holders. Those with college debt but no degree are financially worse off than high school graduates with no debt!

During the Digital Credentials conference, which took place this week in Philadelphia, attending educators shared their readiness to meet the demand for clearer signals, more flexibility, and credentials that travel.