What if a special lab at the University of Rhode Island (URI) could educate the community on the ethical, technological, and social consequences of artificial intelligence (AI)? That's what Karim Boughida, dean of the URI Libraries, is counting on with a unique AI lab in the Robert L. Carothers Library at URI. Students, faculty members, state officials, business people, and community members can all use the lab for answers. And although AI labs have been around for decades, this is the first-of-its-kind in a common area, open to the public. The lab's goals are two-fold: How the lab operates Funded by a $143,065 grant from the Champlin Foundation, the lab has a Nvidia supercomputer as its centerpiece. It includes software-focused makerspaces and design-thinking labs, creating a multidisciplinary environment that's rare in academic buildings, Boughida says.