WorkSeptember 4, 2026via GeekWire
WSU President Betsy Cantwell builds custom AI agents — but won’t ask them to predict the Apple Cup
Why it matters
A senior leader's practical deployment of agents in higher education, paired with a principled stance on the limits of AI in institutional decision-making. Reflects the emerging boundary-setting in enterprise AI adoption.
Key signals
- WSU President Betsy Cantwell uses custom AI agents for research de-risking and financial modeling
- Agents deployed in college athletics financial scenarios
- Cantwell explicitly rejects AI for outcome prediction (Apple Cup forecasting)
- Framed as a values-driven constraint on AI deployment in education
- WSU President Betsy Cantwell using custom AI agents for research de-risking and financial modeling
- Leader explicitly rejecting agent use for prediction/forecasting tasks
- Framed as commentary on AI's role in education vs. human judgment
The hook
A university president is deploying AI agents across research and finance — but drawing a hard line on what they won't automate.
Former national lab scientist and current Washington State University President Betsy Cantwell uses custom AI agents to de-risk research and model complex financial scenarios for college athletics. But the top Cougar believes artificial intelligence can never replace human wonder in education and re…