The NUS Young Fellowship is an international academic and leadership development program that combines public lectures, research seminars, lab visits, and scientific project competitions. One of the program’s core events was a poster competition themed “How Will Gen AI Change PhD Research?”, which attracted participation from around 20 teams.

The team—consisting of Hansen Jonathan (Indonesia), Harshil Jain (India), Park Sehee (South Korea), Letizia Ferhati (Italy), and Lynn Younes (Lebanon)—presented an idea titled “Un-Googleable Thesis”. Their project explored the issue of originality in academic research in the era of generative AI and emphasized the enduring importance of the human role in generating ideas that cannot be produced by search engines or AI systems.

In their work, the team critiqued the growing tendency to rely on AI for idea generation. They highlighted the fact that not all ideas produced by AI are truly new or original.

Through their poster, the team underscored the notion that while repetitive tasks can be replaced by AI, the human capacity to question and innovate remains the foundation of civilizational progress. They expressed this message through eight self-designed presentation slides, emphasizing the importance of maintaining curiosity as the core of all meaningful research.

Despite the demanding program schedule, the team managed to capture the judges’ attention with a fresh visual approach and a powerful concept. “We wanted to emphasize the importance of human curiosity as the true driver of research, rather than simply relying on AI for answers,” said Hansen.

Without relying on any specific strategy, the team focused on the strength of their idea and an out-of-the-box poster design. “We deliberately didn’t use any internet templates so our poster would stand out. That was one of the factors that made our work unique,” he explained.

In closing, Hansen remarked that the program was not just a competition, but also a valuable opportunity to learn, exchange ideas, and build international relationships. He emphasized the importance of having the courage to try and staying focused on the process, noting that the experiences and lessons gained were far more meaningful than the final result.

Reporter: Indira Akmalia Hendri (Urban and Regional Planning, Class of 2021)