California State renews OpenAI contract

California State University renewed its contract with OpenAI this week, extending a systemwide ChatGPT Edu deal that has drawn faculty criticism over cost, educational value and procurement priorities. A CSU spokesperson told EdSource the university system will pay $13 million a year for three years to provide access to more than 470,000 students and 63,000 faculty and staff. (lbpost.com) The renewal lands as OpenAI is also pushing ChatGPT deeper into another sensitive category: personal finance. On May 15, the company began a U.S. preview that lets ChatGPT Pro users connect bank accounts, investment portfolios and credit cards inside the chatbot. (openai.com) The two developments are separate products, but both put OpenAI’s software closer to institutional records and personal financial data. CSU officials said the contract renewal followed an “ongoing and iterative process intended to balance innovation, risk management and educational outcomes.” Faculty critics said the agreement reopens questions about whether universities are buying a general-purpose chatbot before settling how it should be governed in classrooms. ### How much did California State commit, and who gets access? California State University said the renewed agreement will cost $13 million annually for three years, after an earlier 18-month subscription that cost $17 million and expires at the end of June. (lbpost.com) The system said the service will be available across its campuses to more than 470,000 students and 63,000 faculty and staff. The CSU contract is the largest partnership OpenAI has with a higher education institution, according to EdSource’s reporting cited by the Long Beach Post. CSU folded the arrangement into a broader AI initiative that also includes partnerships with Adobe, Google and IBM. (lbpost.com) ### Why are faculty objecting again? In January, faculty delivered a petition to CSU leadership urging Chancellor Mildred García not to renew the OpenAI contract, according to Inside Higher Ed and EdSource. The petition argued the money should be used to protect jobs on campuses facing layoffs rather than expand a chatbot program during a period of financial strain. (lbpost.com) Martha Kenney, a professor of women’s and gender studies at San Francisco State University, told EdSource that ChatGPT Edu is “not right for the CSU at this budget moment.” Kenney and other critics said their objection is not to all AI tools but to the use of general-purpose chatbots in teaching and research settings where reliability and sourcing matter. (lbpost.com) ### What exactly did OpenAI add to ChatGPT for finance? OpenAI said on May 15 it started a preview of a personal finance experience for ChatGPT Pro users in the United States on web and iOS. The feature lets users connect financial accounts, view a dashboard of spending and portfolio activity, and ask questions based on their own financial context. (insidehighered.com) TechCrunch reported that the tool supports connections to more than 12,000 financial institutions, including firms such as Chase, Fidelity, Schwab, Robinhood, American Express and Capital One. OpenAI said users can remove account connections in settings, and TechCrunch reported that synced data is removed from ChatGPT within 30 days after disconnection. (lbpost.com) ### Where does Plaid fit, and what data does OpenAI say it sees? Plaid said the ChatGPT finance product is powered by its account-linking infrastructure, which OpenAI uses to connect users to financial institutions. (openai.com) OpenAI said ChatGPT guides users through linking accounts “through Plaid,” with Intuit support coming later. Plaid described the product as a way to give users “real-time answers and insights” based on their actual financial picture, while OpenAI said the service is meant to help users understand spending, subscriptions, payments and portfolio performance. That means Plaid intermediates the account connection rather than users handing raw bank credentials directly to ChatGPT, according to the companies’ descriptions of the setup. (techcrunch.com) ### What happens next for both rollouts? June 30 is the date the prior CSU contract expires, according to Inside Higher Ed, and the renewed three-year term follows that agreement. Faculty opposition is likely to continue as campuses decide how broadly ChatGPT Edu is used in courses and administrative work. (plaid.com) OpenAI said the finance product is starting with a smaller U.S. Pro preview before expanding, with the goal of rolling it out to Plus users and eventually making it available more broadly. The company also said Intuit support is coming soon, adding another named participant to the next stage of the product’s rollout. (plaid.com) (openai.com) (insidehighered.com)