21 webinar of the “9 Months, 9 Universities” series: Generative AI and the role of Universities: from LLM to multi-model architectures

Generative AI and the role of Universities: from LLM to multi-model architectures

Tuesday, 16 December 2025 at 11:00 CET. 

Generative artificial intelligence represents an epochal transformation for universities, comparable to the invention of the printing press or the digital revolution. Universities have the unique responsibility to guide this transformation, training not only aware users, but critical citizens capable of understanding the potential, limitations, and ethical implications of AI.

This presentation analyzes the strategic role of academic institutions in guiding this change, starting from the awareness that the transformation of knowledge and learning is a historical constant, not an exception.

The core of this talk concerns the five pillars of multi-model architectures (scalability, accessibility, security, privacy, and replicability), which represent a mature and sustainable approach compared to the adoption of single commercial models. These pillars are not just technical requirements, but ethical principles that allow universities to adopt AI while maintaining their fundamental values.

In addition, Dario Da Re will examine the impact of generative AI on three fundamental dimensions: 

• Teaching, where it is necessary to rethink what it means to learn and assess in the AI era.

• Research organization, with particular attention to the critical issues of hallucinations and the limitations of model training compared to the 200 million existing scientific publications.

• The extraordinary opportunities for disciplinary hybridisation enable the solution of complex problems by drawing on knowledge and methodologies from different fields.
  

The presentation will conclude with practical examples of multi-model architecture implementation.

About the Speaker

Dario Da Re has been the Director of the Digital Learning and Multimedia Office at the University of Padova since 2017. With a PhD in Social Research Methodology, he coordinates innovative generative artificial intelligence projects for teaching, including the Lucrez-IA platform and its integrations into software and applications.

He managed the university’s digital transformation during the Covid-19 emergency, implementing technological solutions for online and hybrid teaching. Currently, he is responsible for the main university technological platforms (Moodle, Zoom, Kaltura) and an adjunct professor of Digital Transformations in the Sociological Sciences degree program. 

He has also been a speaker at numerous international conferences on digital innovation. In 2021, he was included in the almanac of the 100 technological innovators of the Italian Public Administration by ForumPA. 

Since 2022, he has been a partner of Meeple Srl, a spin-off of the University of Padova through which Lucrez-IA is promoted and distributed.