In an interview at CIO Edge, Sinan Erbay, Chief Information Officer at RMIT, highlighted the proactive approach RMIT takes to AI adoption, focusing on three key strategies: taking, shaping, and making AI solutions.

By leveraging generative AI within secure internal boundaries, RMIT developed its own Virtual Assisted Learning (VAL) platform, ensuring data security while maximising learning opportunities.

This AI tool is widely adopted by students and staff, supporting tasks such as assignment writing, interview preparation, and translation.

The university’s decision to embrace AI rather than restrict its use has encouraged responsible adoption, enhancing both student learning experiences and academic support.

One of the most significant outcomes of RMIT’s AI initiative has been its impact on accessibility and inclusivity.

Rather than leaving students to rely on costly external AI services, RMIT provides high-quality AI tools free of charge, helping students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds engage with technology.

ADAPT’s research also aligns with this approach, showing that AI-driven productivity gains are maximised when organisations foster a culture of innovation and user adoption.

RMIT has successfully tailored its AI implementation across disciplines, recognising different usage patterns in areas such as design, science, and international campuses like Vietnam, where translation tools are particularly valuable.

The scalability of RMIT’s AI project is another key achievement, with a proof of concept developed in just six to eight weeks, followed by a structured expansion over several months.

This rapid but strategic deployment was driven by a highly engaged AI Ambitions Group, demonstrating that collaboration between research, academic, and student communities accelerates meaningful AI adoption.

By fostering cross-disciplinary learning and practical applications such as AI-assisted mock interviews and language models, RMIT has set a benchmark for AI integration in education.

 

Key takeaways:

  • Secure, responsible AI adoption: RMIT developed its own Virtual Assisted Learning (VAL) platform, ensuring AI is used within secure internal boundaries. This approach allows students and staff to leverage AI tools for learning, assignments, and professional development while protecting intellectual property and data security.
  • Enhancing accessibility & inclusion: By providing AI tools free of charge, RMIT ensures that all students, regardless of socio-economic background, can access advanced learning technologies. AI is being used across disciplines, with tailored applications for different faculties and campuses, such as translation tools in Vietnam.
  • Fast & scalable AI implementation: A dedicated AI Ambitions Group enabled RMIT to move from concept to proof of deployment in just six to eight weeks, with full-scale implementation following within months. This collaborative approach between academics, researchers, and students has driven high adoption and meaningful use of AI across the university.
Contributors
Sinan Erbay Chief Information Officer at RMIT University
Sinan Erbay has a wealth of experience in various leadership roles within the IT industry. Currently serving as the Chief Information Officer... More

Sinan Erbay has a wealth of experience in various leadership roles within the IT industry. Currently serving as the Chief Information Officer at RMIT University, Erbay has also held positions such as Director at Superpartners and Manager at Daimaru. With a background that includes roles at companies like Vogel Corporation and Royal Insurance, Erbay’s career has spanned over several decades. Additionally, Sinan has pursued further education at Melbourne Business School in 2008.

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Gabby Fredkin Head of Analytics & Insights at ADAPT
As the Head of Analytics and Insights at ADAPT, Gabby Fredkin’s primary role is managing analysis to produce ADAPT’s actionable insights to... More

As the Head of Analytics and Insights at ADAPT, Gabby Fredkin’s primary role is managing analysis to produce ADAPT’s actionable insights to identify trends supporting organisations in Australia.

With a passion for creating stories with data, Gabby is consistently rated as one of the top speakers at ADAPT’s events. In roundtable discussions, he specialises in using statistics to initiate thought-provoking discussions, enabling ADAPT’s customers to become more data-driven.​

Using modern data science techniques, he provides ADAPT and its customers with confidence in the accuracy and validity of the information used for ADAPT’s research, advisory and events.

Working across artificial intelligence, machine learning, AI ethics, DevSecOps, end-user behaviour, and human-centred design, Gabby’s vast experience continues to grow, supported in part by a Master of Business Analytics from Deakin University.

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transformation leadership skills