October 21, 2026

The University of Utah on October 10 hosted a free, hands-on workshop where 40 students, faculty, and staff from across the state’s higher education community explored agentic AI—systems that use language models, tools, and information to carry out tasks.

The daylong workshop—led by Majid Memari, an NVIDIA-certified instructor and assistant professor of computer science at Utah Valley University—supported a memorandum of understanding between the state and NVIDIA that aims to expand AI education across Utah.

“Events like this contribute to Utah’s AI readiness by connecting learners and educators across institutions, giving them a clearer understanding of emerging AI systems, and building a common foundation for further exploration,” Memari said.

Memari used materials from the NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute’s Building Agentic AI Applications with LLMs course and guided notebook exercises to make agentic AI concepts accessible through practice. Attendees explored how agents use context, call tools, coordinate tasks, and retrieve evidence. The lesson culminated in a research-agent assessment designed to bring these components together.

Participants joined from the University of Utah, Utah Valley University, and Utah State University and represented a wide range of roles and disciplines, from business to engineering. The result, Memari said, was an opportunity to connect AI learning with the needs of classrooms, research projects, and professional practice.

Workshop activities emphasized questions that matter across use cases: What information does an agent receive? What actions does it actually perform? What evidence supports its answer? “These questions help participants evaluate potential applications and make more informed decisions about using AI,” Memari said.

The workshop was presented in partnership with ​NVIDIA, Utah Valley University, and several University of Utah entities: the David Eccles School of Business, the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, and the Scientific Computing and Imaging Institute and its One-U Responsible AI Initiative.

Memari will teach a second session of this course on November 13 for up to 20 industry professionals. Read more and register.