Devin Chen is among the first generation of Bulldogs using AI to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges. In his case: hunger.
As the son of restaurateurs, the junior cybersecurity major from Louisville understands how food brings people together. He also recognizes that many Mississippians face food insecurity. Many lack access to reliable food sources, and too many do not have enough to eat.
AI for Food Access in Mississippi
Chen had a question for his community. What if local food banks could share a single network to better route food where it is needed most?
Through his work at Mississippi State, Chen is building software that uses AI and machine learning. He partners with Amazon Web Services and the Hattiesburg-based food bank Extra Table. Together, the software analyzes statewide hunger data and food bank inventories. It routes nourishment to where it is critically needed. Simply put, what Chen learns at MSU could feed those who need help the most.
Student Innovation and Workforce Readiness
Chen is part of a growing pack of Bulldogs advancing AI to address real-world challenges. MSU is already a national leader in AI and data science education. New MSU AI education funding announced this summer will keep the university at the forefront.
MAI-TAP and MSU AI Education Funding
In June, Gov. Tate Reeves launched the Mississippi AI Talent Accelerator Program, or MAI-TAP. The program partners AccelerateMS, the Mississippi Development Authority, and Amazon Web Services. It also includes many of the state’s universities and community colleges. MAI-TAP drives the research, development, and use of AI in education and the state’s economy.
Through MAI-TAP, multiple universities will receive a combined $9.1 million in grants. Each grant advances programs based on each institution’s strengths. As the state’s premier research institution, MSU will receive $2.2 million. That gives MSU the largest share among all recipients.
The MSU AI education funding will support an endowment and private matches for workforce and research initiatives. Specifically, MSU will add new faculty. The university will also develop a graduate certificate in data center construction management, one of the first programs of its kind in the nation.
When announcing the program, Reeves called it a “bold step forward for Mississippi” that will ensure the Magnolia State leads in innovation and workforce readiness.
“We’re not just preparing for the future—we’re building it. This investment will help to ensure that Mississippians are equipped with the skills needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving digital economy,” he said. “This is about more than just jobs—it’s about opportunity.”
Preparing Mississippi for an AI-Driven Future
Consider humanity’s progress in flight to understand how fast AI will transform the world. Just 66 years passed between powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, and humans walking on the moon. Researchers believe AI will drive similar leaps forward in an even shorter time.
Julie Jordan is MSU’s senior advisor for artificial intelligence and data governance. She said the pace of change is hard to grasp.
“It’s daunting, but it’s exciting and amazing at the same time,” she said of helping lead MSU’s work in the emerging technology. “I can’t believe how fast this is moving, and even the experts have a hard time predicting five years out, much less 10 to 15.
What Success Looks Like for Graduates
“But this is a situation Mississippi State is proud to be in—we’re proud to figure out how to lead this and help the state. The way I see it, the most important thing we can do right now is upskill our people. They’re so important to this and how we transition in the future,” Jordan continued. “The bottom line is AI is going to be pervasive and ubiquitous. If we cannot help our people know how to take advantage of it, we will be left behind as a state.”
Jordan added that she has a clear picture of what success looks like for MSU graduates.
“We want to turn out graduates that employers are knocking down our doors to hire because they’re well-prepared in the academics and skills of the day and, like Dr. Keenum always says, are prepared to be good citizens of this state and country, and give back to their communities,” she said. “His three principles of integrity, respect and hard work don’t change just because AI tools become part of our daily lives.”
She also serves as MSU’s representative on the AI Workforce Readiness Council. MAI-TAP created the council to oversee collaboration between the state, participating schools, and industry.
MAIN and the Statewide AI Strategy
Kollin Napier chairs the AI Workforce Readiness Council. Napier is a three-time MSU graduate who serves as director of the Mississippi Artificial Intelligence Network, the nation’s first statewide AI initiative. Learn more about MAIN’s mission and statewide approach.
“Mississippi is very much a partnership state. Others may have a single or maybe a couple institutions working on it, but nobody is tackling AI development as a state like Mississippi is,” Napier said. “The unique approach Mississippi State is taking—one that many other institutions are looking at and watching—is the interdisciplinary approach to AI education. MSU is creating students who are very skilled at multiple areas of computing technology.
“We’re showing companies that we’re producing talent here in the state,” he continued. “Combined with continued economic investments, we’re building a pipeline for these graduates to stay in Mississippi.”
MSU stands among the first universities in the country to establish multidisciplined, AI-related degree pathways. These pathways focus on tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, as well as their real-world applications. The new data center construction certificate will also address the physical infrastructure that supports AI’s growing needs.
MSU AI Degree and Data Science Programs
In 2024, MSU became the first university in the Southeastern Conference to launch a Bachelor of Science in artificial intelligence. Housed in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, the program covers machine learning, neural networks, natural language processing, and computer vision. It prepares graduates for specialized careers in AI development and research. This fall, the department also launched a master’s degree in the field, with 12 hours of electives so students can tailor their education to their interests.
New College and AI Pathways
This year, the state’s Institutions of Higher Learning approved MSU’s newest college. The College of Integrative Studies is a cross-campus collaborative effort housing the Bachelor of Science in data science, the Master of Applied Data Science, and a certification in data science pedagogy for educators. The undergraduate data science degree, another first of its kind in the Southeast, applies fundamentals to one of 10 concentrations across MSU’s academic colleges. The applied master’s degree also offers hands-on experiences tailored to students’ career goals.
Jamie Dyer, dean of the College of Integrative Studies, said MSU AI education funding positions the university to serve every type of student.
“From the academic side, we know the job market will need people to develop AI, use it and build the infrastructure supporting it, so we’re going to teach students all three,” said Dyer. “We have an opportunity to team up with everyone across campus and make AI universitywide instead of pigeonholing it.
“We want to be able to give students what they need to be successful,” he continued. “If you want to build AI, we have a degree for you; if you want to apply AI, we have a degree for you; and if you want to build a building that runs AI, we’ll have a pathway for you, too.”
Explore AI learning opportunities through MAIN to discover how Mississippi is building an AI-ready workforce statewide.