Overview
- On Friday, MIT President Sally Kornbluth delivered the formal charge urging the Class of 2026 to uphold the institute’s values of excellence and curiosity and to act ethically in their careers.
- Kornbluth warned that falling U.S. public investment in curiosity-driven basic research risks shrinking the pipeline of future discoveries and the supply of future scientists.
- Alumna and AMD CEO Lisa Su told graduates to “run toward the hardest problems” and stressed that AI is a tool that cannot decide which problems to solve or take responsibility for outcomes.
- Su’s remarks about AI drew an initial audible reaction from the audience but did not derail the address, and speakers framed the moment as handing graduates both opportunity and responsibility in an AI-impacted job market.
- About 2,772 graduates attended the ceremonies, which organizers used to press for sustained public support for discovery science and to caution that the choices made now will shape innovation for decades.