AI Expert Jerry Kaplan Prompts MIP Graduates to Take Action, Fix Things, and Make the World a Better Place
AI Expert Jerry Kaplan Prompts MIP Graduates to Take Action, Fix Things, and Make the World a Better Place
Kaplan, a technologist and entrepreneur, encouraged the graduates of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2026 to move forward with action in the face of challenging times.
For many newly minted alumni, this graduation season has come with a mix of excitement and uncertainty as they celebrate their accomplishments while also looking into a future where geopolitical shifts, technological upheaval, and social change are reshaping almost every sector and career path.
Many of the 25 graduates of the Class of 2026 of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy (MIP) have already felt that uncertainty. Coming from over 15 countries and regions, including Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Kenya, Libya, Nigeria, Peru, Singapore, South Korea, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States, the rapid shifts in the international order during the students’ two years of study at Stanford have often gone beyond being a topic of discussion in the classroom to impact personal and private life as well.
Jerry Kaplan, who is an adjunct lecturer in the MIP program and Computer Science department, and a renowned veteran of Silicon Valley and technological innovator, encouraged the graduates not to shrink from these challenges, but embrace them.
“The future is very bright – if we can just get through these challenging times,” he told the graduates. “You have an important role to play. Always remember: chaos for the rest of us means opportunity for you.”
Drawing on his own experiences as a new graduate years ago, he reminded those listening that uncertainty is nothing new. As a student, he entered a national conversation shaped by the Vietnam War, the shootings of student protesters at Kent State University, and the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Kennedy brothers.
But chaos, Kaplan told the graduates, can also be a catalyst for change. Just as the pains of the 60s and 70s brought forth advancements in civil rights, environmental justice, equity, and affirmative action, so too, Kaplan said, can the current moment be a springboard for good.
“All the necessary elements are in place for a great leap forward culturally, politically, and economically. Most people are disgusted with the status quo. We have the means for change. And we’re going to have the resources, as AI accelerates progress in technology, science, and productivity,” Kaplan said.
Rather than treat AI like a boogeyman, Kaplan urged the graduating class to use the skills they have learned while in the MIP program to direct the power and potential of new technologies towards finding solutions, fixing problems, and ensuring equity.
“AI's dangers aren't science fiction — there's no malevolent machine waking up to enslave us. The risks are entirely human. And so are the solutions.”
![[Left] A spouse gives his wife a kiss following her graduation from the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy at Stanford University; [Right] Tyler Perry and Cosima Zaveta, graduates of the Class of 2026 of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy, laugh together.](https://fsi9-prod.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/styles/308x210_x2/public/2026-06/mip_graduation_2026_1_hero.png?itok=D3yK_OR-)
![[Left] A spouse gives his wife a kiss following her graduation from the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy at Stanford University; [Right] Tyler Perry and Cosima Zaveta, graduates of the Class of 2026 of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy, laugh together.](https://fsi9-prod.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/styles/1300x1300_x2/public/2026-06/mip_graduation_2026_1_hero.png?itok=_iT490UY)
The newest alumni are well equipped to find the human solutions Kaplan calls for. The core of the MIP program centers on the Problem-Solving Framework, a multi-disciplinary, iterative guide developed by MIP director Francis Fukuyama and former FSI Senior Fellow Jeremy Weinstein to help solve public problems using context, practical data, and evidence-based solutions.
And the Class of 2026 is well on their way to making solutions a reality around the world. Following their graduation, they will be heading into government and ministry service in the United Arab Emirates, South Korea, and India. Several will be returning to military careers in the Army and Air Force. Others are headed into leadership and consulting careers in the private sector, and still others will be continuing their education with additional degrees in law and environmental science.
Wherever they are headed, Kaplan’s prompt to all the graduates on how to tackle the challenges they will find is the same:
“Each morning when you wake up, say to yourself, ‘This is not okay, and I’m going to fix it.’ Technology will provide the abundance, but you must provide the direction. If you do that, I guarantee you will make the world a better place.”
