UCLA Humanities Class Adopts AI-Generated Course Materials for Winter Quarter
UCLA launches its first humanities course using AI-generated materials, including a textbook and assignments created by the Kudu platform. The technology aims to reduce professor workload while maintaining consistent, focused content for students.
UCLA introduces its first humanities division course powered entirely by AI-generated materials in winter 2025. A comparative literature survey covering the Middle Ages to the 17th century uses a textbook, homework assignments, and teaching assistant resources created by Kudu, an advanced textbook platform founded by UCLA physics professor Alexander Kusenko.
Professor Zrinka Stahuljak provides Kudu with her existing class notes, PowerPoint presentations, and YouTube videos to generate the specialized content. While traditional course creation takes three to four months, UCLA reports that professors only need to dedicate about 20 hours to the AI-assisted process, for which Kudu provides financial compensation.
This AI-driven approach allows Stahuljak and her teaching assistants to spend more direct time interacting with students while ensuring consistent delivery of course information. Students interact directly with the Kudu system to ask questions, but the AI restricts its answers strictly to the professor-provided materials rather than pulling information from the broader internet.