Tina Austin is an author, researcher and AI education leader whose work focuses on developing human reasoning, judgment and independent capability in the age of artificial intelligence. Her background spans university teaching, biomedical research, responsible AI adoption and educational innovation. She currently serves as Director, AI Education & Learning Systems—Public Interest Technology at UCLA.
She is the creator of the UnBlooms™ Framework, founder of its international Longitudinal Research Consortium and lead of the IEEE AI Assessment Redesign Subgroup. Her work bridges research, institutional practice and standards development to examine not simply how AI improves performance, but whether human capabilities improve and endure over time.
She works with universities, nonprofits, and philanthropic organizations to help them adopt artificial intelligence thoughtfully and responsibly—guiding institutional AI adoption strategy, change management, and governance from isolated pilots to sustainable, equitable transformation.
As the author of The UnBlooms™ Workbook: How to Design, Teach, and Assess Human Reasoning in the AI Era, she has taught at UCLA, USC, CSU, and Caltech in subjects spanning regenerative medicine, communication, computational biology, AI ethics, and critical thinking with AI. Her work has also appeared in Inside Higher Ed.
Global educator engagement through AI professional development and learning initiatives
Building learning communities
In 2022, soon after ChatGPT’s release, Tina launched the University of California AI Initiative, a statewide community of practice bringing educators together to develop effective strategies for integrating AI into teaching and research. Since then, she has supported more than 17,980 faculty across over 100 countries through AI education initiatives and professional development, including applications of her UnBlooms™ Framework—a reimagining of Bloom’s Taxonomy that places human reasoning, judgment and reflection at the centre of AI-mediated learning.
Longitudinal research and human capability
Advancing longitudinal research in AI education
In October 2026, Tina publicly launched the UnBlooms™ Longitudinal Research Consortium at the Cambridge AI in Education Summit, where she presented her research on measuring human capability over time in AI-mediated learning.
The consortium addresses a critical gap in AI education research: fragmented, short-term studies that often measure immediate performance rather than whether learners develop and retain independent reasoning, judgment and metacognitive skills.
By bringing together researchers and institutions internationally, the consortium aims to establish shared longitudinal research methods, pool findings across disciplines and investigate what happens to human capabilities both during AI use and after AI support is removed.
Policy and public leadership
Tina also leads the IEEE AI Assessment Redesign Subgroup, contributing to the development of standards for assessment in AI-mediated education. Her work focuses on how institutions can evaluate human reasoning, judgment and independent capability when AI is increasingly integrated into learning and assessment.
Tina serves on multiple AI taskforces and advisory boards, including the California Department of Education AI & Workforce Board, where she is co-authoring language for Senate Bill 1288 on statewide AI literacy, and the Los Angeles AI Taskforce. She guides responsible AI implementation across higher education and the Los Angeles Regional Consortium, a nonprofit network supporting AI innovation across California’s community colleges and K–12 systems.
International recognition
In September 2026, Tina was selected by LinkedIn as a Top Voice in AI & Education, recognising her contributions to public discourse on artificial intelligence, teaching and learning.
Tina has been recognized as one of ASU+GSV’s Top Leading Women in AI (2025), a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (2025–26), a SXSW EDU judge (2026), and one of a small group of global faculty invited to speak at OpenAI Headquarters for its 2025 Higher Education Summit.
She presented the UnBlooms™ AI Safety Literacy Framework at UNESCO House in Paris at IASEAI’26. Her work has been featured by CNN, Oxford University’s Department of Education AIEOU, the OpenAI Global Faculty AI Project, and Microsoft.
Making AI gainable
Tina is the founder of GAInable.ai, a platform where faculty learn how to make generative AI genuinely gainable—using it to gain time, insight, and equity without losing human values. Through GAInable.ai, she designs professional learning programs that help educators navigate AI responsibly, equitably, and confidently. She has also contributed to global frameworks including Dr. Perkins’ AI Assessment Scale.
In 2025, Tina was selected as one of the first AI Education Advisors to the Marconi Society’s AI Institute. In this role, she helps advance responsible AI education and scale institutional frameworks that move universities and technology leaders from isolated pilots to meaningful, equitable transformation.
Whether speaking on stage, consulting with universities, or mentoring educators, Tina champions an inclusive vision of AI-ready learning grounded in science, ethics, and human insight. Outside the classroom, she draws inspiration from painting, travel, hiking, and yoga.
Award-winning expertise
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