Standing Up for Israel at Harvard JONATHAN FRIEDEN ’20 Yeshiva College JD Candidate at Harvard Law School
Meet the AI Chatbot That’s as Smart as Your Favorite Prof MANISH KUMAR THOTA
’24 Katz School of Science and Health M.S. Candidate in Artificial Intelligence
G oogle the name Jonathan Frieden ’20YC and you’ll be amazed at the number of results that appear. That’s be- cause the third-year student at Harvard Law School has become a leader in the fight against antisemitism that’s been plaguing college campuses since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel. “Right after Oct. 7, over 30 student clubs at Harvard signed onto a statement blaming Israel for the murder of their own peo- ple,” said Frieden, the president of Alliance for Israel at Harvard. “Since then, some antisemitism has masqueraded as anti-Zionism, including unauthorized rallies in buildings that stop classes, with hundreds chanting ‘from the river to the sea’ and ‘globalize the inti- fada.’” The hatred has been isolating, he admits, “but has brought the Jewish community together in a beautiful way.” The rising star has been the go-to spokesman for Jewish college students after he spoke eloquently and passionately at a press con- ference in Washington, D.C. (introduced by House Speaker Mike Johnson), and has appeared on many national news channels since, including C-SPAN and Fox News. The press conference took place shortly before the hearing held by the Committee on Education & the Workforce on December 15, 2023, titled “Holding Campus Leaders Accountable and Confronting Antisemitism.” At the hear- ing, presidents from three of the nation’s most elite universities failed to forcefully condemn antisemitism and threats against Jew- ish students, which resulted in outrage and the resignation of two of the presidents. Thanks to his campus advocacy for Israel, Frieden was invited to attend the hearing by U.S. Representative Virginia Foxx, chair of the committee, and sat for over five hours directly behind Dr. Claudine Gay, then-president of Harvard, while she testified. “The hearing was a mess,” said Frieden. “Instead of taking responsibility, asserting moral clarity, and laying out a plan for the future, the presidents tried defending themselves with free speech arguments, yet never addressed the double standard.” Prior to the hearing, he helped prepare materials for U.S. Repre- sentative Elise Stefanik, who led part of the questioning of the uni- versity presidents. “I had the pleasure of meeting Speaker Johnson, Representative Stefanik, Representative Foxx and other members of Congress,” he said. “They were horrified by what my fellow stu- dents and I told them and empathized deeply with us.” Frieden has since been a guest on a Fox/iHeartRadio podcast, published an article in the National Review, met with the Israeli consul general in Boston and is still receiving media inquiries. In addition to his advocacy and law school studies, he is the host of the Harvard Business Law Review podcast, which he founded, and for which he has interviewed leaders and innovators at the intersec- tion of business and law. He attributes his success as a leader to skills he learned while at
I magine conversing with your most knowledgeable professor, the one who has a wealth of information and is eager to share it. That is the es- sence of my Visual Question Answering (VQA) model. The twist here is that the ‘professor’ is not a person but a computer equipped to provide insights and answers with the same depth and accessibility.” That is how Manish Kumar Thota, who is pursuing a master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence (AI) at the Katz School of Sci- ence and Health, describes his research work on developing a machine-learning chatbot that can assist students academi- cally. “The challenge is to teach my VQA model, which I refer to as a ‘digital brain,’ to understand both images and questions and respond the way your most knowledgeable professor would. It’s all about making com- puters as smart as the sharpest minds out there, one pixel at a time.” Originally from Hyderabad, a major center for technology in southern India, Thota became interested in AI and data sci- ence during his undergraduate years when he worked on a project focused on “deep learning”—a method in AI that teaches computers to process data in a way that is inspired by the human brain. Deep-learn- ing models can recognize complex patterns in pictures, text, sounds and other data to produce accurate insights and predictions with the precision one might expect from a seasoned pro. “That project fascinated me,” explained Thota. “Together with my back- ground in computer science, it led me to join Stryker R&D, working on cutting-edge projects in the Asia-Pacific region.” His passion for AI research eventually drew him to the Katz School. “I chose Katz for my master’s degree because of its excel- lent course structure and alignment with my research interests,” said Thota. “The
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opportunity to work closely with faculty members whose work resonated with my interests was a major factor in my decision. Additionally, I had the privilege of intern- ing as a machine-learning engineer at S&P Global during the summer and was fortu- nate to receive the Sacks Impact Graduate Fellowship in Ethics and Entrepreneurship from YU, covering my tuition expenses.” At the Katz School, Thota is engaged in innovative projects, including the develop- ment of a VQA chatbot that integrates com- puter vision and natural language process- ing technologies. It leverages a cutting-edge Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) model to deliver enhanced personalized and interactive learning experiences. By in- corporating machine learning algorithms, advanced natural language processing and a comprehensive range of educational con- tent, the chatbot enables students to learn at their preferred pace. They can revisit the material as often as necessary, engage with it more interactively and receive instant
feedback on their comprehension. “The goal of the project is to train a large-language model with vision capabili- ties that can recognize and teach course content, answer questions and provide in- teractions with audiences,” said Dr. Youshan Zhang, an assistant AI professor in the Katz School and Thota’s adviser. “This model can then be used to improve the learning expe- rience for students in online courses by pro- viding them with a more interactive and engaging learning environment.” When asked if we should be nervous or excited about what lies ahead, Thota smiled. “The future of chatbots holds great promise, revolutionizing how we interact with technology and business,” he said. “While some may feel apprehensive about their chatbots, there’s more reason to be excited. These AI-driven assistants will streamline tasks, improve customer ser- vice, enhance accessibility and make daily life easier and more efficient.”
Yeshiva University. “One of the things that I loved about my experi- ence at YU was the ability to take leadership roles,” said Frieden, who was an honors student and majored in behavioral economics. “I had the amazing opportunity to learn from Dr. Jonathan Schwab, YU’s director of Student Life, who taught me about cultivating team culture, the power of active listening and rallying around a shared vision.” He also served as Head RA (resident advisor), pres- ident of the Honors Council, Mock Trial captain and Model UN chair as an undergraduate. Since Oct. 7, he has been documenting campus antisemitism, fostering Jewish and interfaith solidarity and advocating to the uni- versity administration. “Throughout my legal career, I hope to stay involved in the Jewish community,” said Frieden. With his devotion to the truth as well as his leadership and pub- lic speaking talents, we’re sure Google hasn’t heard the last of this impressive and accomplished YU graduate.
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YU Today | Education and Leadership to Empower Our Next Generation
YU Today | Education and Leadership to Empower Our Next Generation
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