Follow-up Report on the ID-E Berlin 2025 Conference

Exploring Difference: How AI is Changing Higher Education

Based on a true story by Teresa Xie (Fulbright Journalist)

Follow-up report on the ID-E Berlin conference, September 30, 2025, Felleshus, Nordic Embassies Berlin

On September 30, 2025, the Nordic Embassies in Berlin hosted the latest edition of ID-E Berlin – International Dialogue on Education, a conference series founded in 2007 as a joint initiative of the British Council Germany, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the German-American Fulbright Commission, the Australian Group of Eight, the Embassy of Canada to Germany, and Freie Universität Berlin.

This year’s panel, hosted by the Embassy of Finland in Germany, addressed one of the most pressing questions currently facing higher education: “Exploring Difference: How AI is Changing Higher Education.”

Representatives from higher education institutions in Finland, Germany, the UK, the United States, and Italy gathered for a lively three-hour discussion moderated by Dr. Jan-Martin Wiarda, journalist and author. The debate revolved around three central questions:

  • What role should universities play in regulating—or attempting to regulate—AI?
  • What can and can’t AI teach us?
  • What is the ultimate goal of integrating AI in higher education?

 

Universities and Regulation: Between Policy and Practice

Professor Simona Tiribelli (University of Macerata, Italy; Institute for Technology & Global Health, USA) highlighted the uneven and often inadequate approaches to AI regulation within higher education. While many universities issue broad guidelines urging caution, she noted a gap between abstract principles and their real-world application.

Too often, she argued, institutions respond defensively with bans or plagiarism checks—approaches that neither address the depth of the challenge nor seize the potential benefits of AI. Instead, Tiribelli called for a proactive roadmap: co-created guidelines, ethics-by-design standards, and curricula that integrate AI literacy as a core competency.

Her intervention emphasized that AI is not only a technical issue but also a question of social justice in higher education—a chance to expose bias, decolonize entrenched frameworks, and strengthen the role of universities as active agents of fairness and inclusion.

Students as Early Adopters

Professor Jussi Kangasharju (University of Helsinki, Finland) drew attention to the “quiet bottom-up revolution” already underway. While universities often focus on pilots or administrative tools, students have normalized everyday AI companions—ChatGPT, Grammarly, coding copilots, and translation tools. This grassroots adoption, he argued, is reshaping higher education faster than formal strategies can keep up.

For faculty, this raises difficult questions. Should professors serve as “AI police”, or should they instead guide students in cultivating judgment, critical thinking, and ethical use of these tools? Kangasharju argued for the latter, warning against institutional hypocrisy where faculty privately use AI while penalizing students for doing the same. The challenge, he noted, is not adoption itself but whether universities can catch up with their own students and reclaim their role as laboratories of experimentation.

AI as Mirror and Provocation

Professor Robin Banerjee (University of Sussex, UK) explored the psychological and pedagogical implications of AI in higher education. Rather than focusing solely on safeguards against misuse, he suggested that AI can act as a mirror, forcing educators and students alike to confront what learning truly means.

Banerjee urged universities to move beyond defensive postures and embrace AI as a chance to cultivate new skills—not only for students but for academics themselves. The key, he argued, is to frame AI as an opportunity to develop purposeful, relational approaches to learning, preparing graduates for employability and career readiness in the decades ahead.

The Limits of GenAI

Professor Jeanette Hofmann (Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society, Germany) cautioned against overstating the capabilities of generative AI. While companies now compare advanced models to conversations with “PhD-level friends,” she stressed the profound uncertainty surrounding the technology.

Central to her argument was the “stochastic parrot” problem: generative AI can mimic patterns but lacks comprehension, insight, or the ability to question assumptions—qualities that lie at the heart of higher education. Hofmann emphasized that universities must preserve the non-substitutability of human knowledge production. At a time when the political independence of higher education is under pressure, maintaining institutional trust in academic standards is more critical than ever.

A Shared Responsibility

Throughout the discussion, panelists circled back to the tension between risk and opportunity. AI brings with it the dangers of misinformation, bias, and skill atrophy—but also the promise of deeper reflection, social justice, and renewed educational practices.

The debate closed on a question posed by Banerjee:
“Is it more important for us to have real insight into AI as a long-term vision, or simply not to get left behind?”

While panelists diverged on answers, they agreed on one key point: universities must work together rather than in isolation. As Kangasharju remarked, “Every university is doing the same stuff on their own. But why?”

The future of higher education in the age of AI, the panel suggested, will depend not only on tools and policies, but on collaboration, ethical literacy, and shared curiosity across institutions and disciplines.

Acknowledgments

The organizers wish to extend their warm thanks to the Embassy of Finland in Berlin and the Finnish Ambassador Kai Sauer for their generous hosting of this year’s ID-E Berlin conference at the Felleshus of the Nordic Embassies, as well as to Mikko Fritze and his dedicated team at the Finnland-Institut for their excellent cooperation and support.

Special appreciation is also extended to Dr. Jan-Martin Wiarda, Fulbright Alumnus, for his expert moderation and ongoing contribution to the ID-E Berlin dialogue series.