ChatGPT Futures 2026: The Generation Redefining AI Usage

A Pioneering Cohort in AI Usage

Today marks the presentation of the first cohort of ChatGPT Futures, the Class of 2026, which highlights 26 students and young creators using artificial intelligence in thoughtful, ambitious, and deeply human ways. These young individuals began their university journey in the fall of 2022, at a time when AI was starting to transform learning, creation, and work methods.

This generation has been among the first users of ChatGPT, sharing this tool with their parents, siblings, friends, and teachers. Today, they graduate in a context where technological changes are accelerating every day.

The Impact of AI on Education and Innovation

Over the past few years, I have spent time on campuses, talking with students and educators, and observing how young people are actually using AI in their daily lives. What I have seen has challenged many assumptions people have about this generation. Contrary to popular belief, these students are not using AI to avoid work, but to accomplish tasks they would have never considered before.

I have met students who are building study tools for their peers, translating mental health resources for underserved communities, advancing scientific research, and designing accessibility tools for peers with disabilities. They are also transforming side projects into real organizations that have a tangible impact.

Kyle Scenna, a 24-year-old entrepreneur and ChatGPT Futures laureate from the University of Waterloo, expresses this new dynamic: “I never thought the gap between noticing a problem and building something real could be so narrowed.” This realization—that one can transform an idea into something tangible faster than ever—is what inspired ChatGPT Futures.

Financial and Technological Support for Innovators

The ChatGPT Futures laureates come from over 20 universities and institutions, such as Vanderbilt, the University of Toronto, Oxford, and Georgia Tech. Each member of the inaugural cohort will receive a $10,000 grant to continue advancing their work and will have access to our cutting-edge models.

What connects them is not a specific discipline or path, but a mindset. They have seen new tools emerge, have been curious, and have decided to build. This could become the defining and critical characteristic of this generation.

Education as a Catalyst for Innovation

There are understandable questions about what AI could mean for learning, creativity, and jobs. I work on these questions every day with partners in the educational ecosystem. But the students I have met have also given me a tangible vision of what AI can unlock right now. It’s agency.

AI does not replace ambition. It amplifies it. For decades, the ability to build something—whether it be a product, a research project, a movement, or a business—has often depended on access. Access to technical training, institutional support, networks, or funding. These barriers have not disappeared, but they are beginning to evolve.

Michelle Lawson, a 20-year-old student at Smith College and a ChatGPT Futures laureate, shared: “I have always believed that you can achieve anything you can imagine, as long as you have the right support and resources. AI has made this possible not just for me, but for hundreds of thousands of people.”

Today, a student with curiosity and determination can prototype an idea faster, learn new skills independently, and contribute significantly in ways that once required much more resources.

Agency Begins in the Classroom

Education plays a crucial role in unlocking this sense of agency for all students. The goal is not simply to teach students how AI works or how to formulate queries effectively. Schools and universities must create space for students to build and create with AI, guided by teachers.

The aim should not be just AI literacy. We need to help students become adaptable thinkers and builders—people capable of navigating ambiguity, pursuing ideas with curiosity, and transforming learning into action.

At OpenAI, we believe that students should help shape the future of AI, not just inherit it. To date, we have supported this transformation with tools and resources to assist educators and students, including ChatGPTEdu, 100 chats for students, Study Mode, and partnerships with organizations like the American Federation of Teachers. ChatGPT Futures is another way to celebrate the young people who are already doing this.

But more than anything, we hope this program highlights a broader truth: the future of AI will not be defined solely by the capabilities of the technology itself. It will be defined by the people who choose to use it with curiosity, responsibility, creativity, and purpose.

Nolan Windham, a 23-year-old and ChatGPT Futures laureate, summarizes this vision: “What’s exciting is that this is just the beginning. Many young people will recognize their place as teachers for a society seeking to learn how to use the technology of tomorrow.”

Congratulations to the first cohort of ChatGPT Futures 2026. We look forward to seeing the future you will build.