WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 12: The headquarters of the Department of Education are shown March 12, 2025 ... More in Washington, DC. The Department of Education announced yesterday that it will reduce its staff by nearly 50 percent, leaving the department with 2,183 workers, a reduction from 4,133 when U.S. President Donald Trump took office for his second term. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)Getty ImagesAI agents will transform every industryand one industry I know well is education. So, how will AI agents change how we teach and learn?To explore this question, I created the Lutz-Clone, an AI version of myself designed to teach my online certificate about AI with eCornell. This clone looks like me, but more importantly, it contains my knowledge and teaching style. It can help students code, discuss AI applications, and raise awareness of ethical challenges all without me being physically present.eCornell was one of the first universities to offer such a clone, but this is only the beginning. The shift to AI agents is a broader trend that will reshape every industry.Also In Education - AI Is Just A Tool To Serve Our PurposeIf you follow me on LinkedIn, youve probably heard me say: AI is just a tool. Theres no magic, and no Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)at least not yet. Like any tool, AIs value lies in how we use it and what purpose it serves.AI Is Changing EducationToday, students and educators alike use tools like Perplexity, You.com, and ChatGPT to write emails, research topics, and summarize texts. These Large Language Models have become essential, trained to predict the next best word in a sentence, enabling smooth text generation and summarization.For students, Large Language Models have become indispensable. And while some institutions attempt to restrict their use saying "don't use ChatGPT" this is as unrealistic as banning the internet or books. The real question is: What are the meaningful changes in education?AI in Eduction: Conversations Instead of QuizzesTraditional quizzes are becoming obsolete. Standardized tests like the Medical College Admission Test can now easily be solved by AI. In my own courses, I built a library of multiple-choice questions over the years to test students on machine learning and real-world AI applications. Since 2023, ChatGPT has consistently passed every single one of them.If AI can answer the questionwhy even ask?Instead, we should shift from quizzes to conversations. In a world where knowledge is instantly accessible, education should focus on critical thinking and dialogue. I now use AI to discuss outcomes with students, encouraging them to evaluate, question, and apply their knowledge something multiple-choice tests could never achieve.Transformation Of Education Towards AIThis change isnt limited to my course. Every teacher can implement this. The simplest way is to use a GPT-based assistant. But, like any change, it comes with challenges:AI Curated Key PointsTeachers cant just post articles anymore. To enable meaningful AI discussions, we need to highlight the key takeaways. For example, when we created a GPT to discuss Marc Andreessens article Why AI Will Save the World, we focused the conversation on three points:There is hype.It makes sense for Marc to talk about the hype.Technology needs integration.AI Access:Not every student has access to paid versions of ChatGPT or similar tools. Thats why the team at eCornell did the incredible work of seamlessly integrating my Lutz-Clone and ChatGPT into the Canvas learning platform. This ensures teaching assistants can follow all student discussions and step in when needed.AI Guided Questions Instead of ChecklistsIve long used checklists in my teaching whether its launching a product, building an AI model, or cleaning up data. But not every situation requires every step in the checklist.Now, we use AI co-pilots to make checklists dynamic. These co-pilots guide students to focus on what matters most, adapt when conditions change, and skip unnecessary steps. The AI does the heavy lifting, while students stay focused on decision-making and learning.Personalized Feedback An AI Teacher Available 24/7In my course, AI-based teaching assistants provide tailored feedback on student projects. Students upload their capstone work, and the AI critiques itjust like I would. This gives students access to a personalized teacher anytime, anywhere. Its a game-changer.Am I truly replaced? Not entirely.What Ive done is scale myself. The AI mirrors my teaching style and follows the courses learning path. Unlike generic AI tools, this clone is fine-tuned to introduce concepts logically and progressively. For example, I often explain that neural networks are just stacks of logistic regressionsa simplification that only makes sense after students learn about linear functions and activation functions.The future of education is not about letting ChatGPT teach students directly. Its about educators designing learning pathsand then using AI to scale their impact.AI in EducationAI is a powerful tool, but its still just a tool. It will change our workflows and how we teach, but the core responsibility remains with educators.We must focus on two essential skills:How to use AI effectivelyHow to recognize its limitsAI models like ChatGPT excel at predictable, patterned tasks but struggle with novelty and edge cases.For instance, when you start the phrase Life is like a box of, AI will almost always suggest chocolatesbecause thats what it has seen most often. But real learning happens when we move beyond the obvious.Similarly, when asking AI to do advanced, context-specific tasks, like writing firewall code, the output is often outdated or generic. Educators must help students recognize these limitations and teach them how to use AI critically.AI In Education - A New Way of InteractionAI tools are revolutionizing how we interact with information and technology. In my course, students now use AI co-pilots to:Analyze dataBuild machine learning modelsDiscuss business strategiesExplore ethical challengesHowever, this transition wasnt automatic. Many students were hesitant at first, sticking to manual methods. But with training on prompting and understanding AI behavior, they became faster, more efficient, and more confident.Just like learning to use a calculator or Google effectively, learning to collaborate with AI takes practice.The Future Of Education is AIAI is reshaping educationmoving us away from memorization toward reasoning, understanding, and critical thinking.With personalized AI tutors, students can learn at their own pace, anytime. The challenge is clear: Educational institutions must equip both students and educators with the tools and skills to harness AI effectively.