In August, the University of Michigan launched an innovative suite of generative AI (GenAI) services exclusively for U-M faculty, staff, and students. One of the most popular tools, U-M Maizey, just released a major new update and announced that the service would remain at no cost for the U-M community to use until January 1, 2024.
Maizey allows users to create a custom GenAI GPT tool that is trained on their data and can be shared with others. The tool can swiftly integrate data from Google Drive, Canvas, or a public website. Users can point it at a data selection and query it in minutes.
Maizey’s new interface has been completely redesigned to improve the user experience. It is now simpler than ever to configure projects, edit existing projects, and navigate the service, among other enhancements. In addition, the update optimizes the tool for mobile and makes Maizey even more compatible with browsers like Safari and standard assistive technologies.
There are hundreds of Maizey projects currently being used by the U-M community. One of the most common applications of Maizey is that it allows anyone to easily create a 24/7 AI tutor for their classes. Users can provide Maizey with available materials for a course and then ask questions about any aspect of the class in natural language.
Several classes at U-M are using Maizey AI tutors at the moment. In September, U-M’s Ross School of Business created a project where instructors tested the quality of course answers from Maizey against answers from ChatGPT 4.0.
Ninety percent of the questions answered by Maizey were rated as better or on par with ChatGPT. Ninety-four percent of Maizey’s answers were rated good or fantastic compared to seventy-four percent for answers by ChatGPT 4.0.
Andrew Wu, assistant professor of Technology and Operations at the Ross School of Business, created a video introduction to how Maizey can enhance the classroom experience.
You can find more information about using U-M Maizey, including detailed walkthroughs, on the “U-M Maizey In Depth” website. All three U-M AI Services—U-M GPT, U-M Maizey, and U-M Toolkit—were developed by Information and Technology Services and are currently available at no cost to U-M faculty, staff, and students through the end of 2023. Rates for U-M Maizey and U-M GPT toolkit will be announced in January 2024. U-M GPT will remain at no cost for the immediate future.
