Beyond the Hype: How AI Actually Works

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has moved from research labs into daily life, driving headlines, innovation, and confusion. This talk demystifies how modern AI systems, especially large language models (LLMs) and generative AI, actually work beneath the surface. We will unpack the core principles that power today’s generative models, explore what they do well, where they fail, and why, and illustrate their most transformative use cases across science, business, and education.

Participants will learn to think critically through the lifecycle of an AI project, from idea to deployment, including how to design effective prompts, align outputs with human goals, and evaluate limitations responsibly. The talk will also address the broader opportunities and risks these technologies bring to individuals, organizations, and society - ranging from productivity and creativity gains to bias, privacy, and trust concerns.

By the end, attendees will leave with a clear, grounded understanding of how AI and LLMs actually work, how to use them thoughtfully, and how to separate genuine progress from hype.

This talk will be presented by local high school student Amogh B. and Nidhal Carla Bouaynaya, the Associate Vice President for Artificial Intelligence, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rowan University, and Director of Rowan’s Machine, Artificial Intelligence & Virtual Reality Center (MAVRC).