The U of I is already creating or providing access to a variety of AI tools.

AI tools created by the U of I

• MindRouter - The University’s own AI service provider, managed by Research Computing and Data Services, and open to any Vandal account. Provides a no-code chat interface, as well as an API for developers.
• VandalChat - A no-code AI chat assistant. Helpful for drafting and editing writing, explaining concepts, summarizing and asking questions about your documents, working with data, writing code, brainstorming, and translating.
• Vandalizer - Allows users to pull structured information out of grant and contract documents, store it in a knowledge base, and use it to more quickly and efficiently complete research administration work.
• UniVERSO - A research-discovery tool built by the Library and the Institute for Interdisciplinary Data Sciences. Describe a topic in ordinary language and it returns U of I researchers whose work matches, drawn from profiles in the VERSO research repository.

Other AI integrations

• Microsoft Copilot - Microsoft’s AI assistant, included in the University’s Microsoft licensing, so staff, faculty, and students already have it. The knowledge base article walks through signing in with your U of I account and confirming you are in the University’s protected environment rather than the consumer version.
• Zoom AI Companion - Meeting summaries and smart recording inside U of I Zoom accounts. It is off by default and the meeting host controls whether it runs.

Building custom AI tools for your work

Anyone interested in using AI to help with their work can request assistance incorporating existing tools or developing a new one. The examples above are specialized tools, but also exemplify how AI can be used to:

• Extract and summarize information from batches of documents.
• Allow searching through information using natural language, rather than keywords.
• Automate repetitive data processing tasks.
• Triage and route incoming information or work.

For a list of AI contacts at the U of I, see the U of I AI Guidance page.

Before you try one

Whether a given tool may hold a given piece of University information is settled by the University’s policy. See U of I AI Guidance for which services are approved for which kinds of data. To talk through applying any of this to your own work, visit the Data Hub.

Last reviewed: 2026-08-11