I went on a walk today. It was crisp yet charming Friday morning, and our tour guide, David, greeted us with enthusiasm. We rushed through Trinity College to the Bodleian library, pausing often as David unveiled the hidden stories tucked into every corner of the town. 'During World War II', he explained, 'Oxford scholars partnered with US pharmaceutical companies to develop industrial-scale production methods for penicillin. 'While many know the story of penicillin’s discovery by Alexander Fleming, David took it a step further. He told us about the first two patients who received the treatment here in Oxford, a policeman, and a four-year old child. David then told us that his own father, an injured soldier during the war, had been among the very first to receive penicillin. 'Without the Oxford institution,' David said, 'you wouldn’t have your guide here today.'
I went on a walk today. Actually, not only today, but every day since I arrived to Oxford on Tuesday. As the Oxford Executive Diploma in Artificial Intelligence for Business modules are spanning from early morning to late evening the whole week, it’s impossible not to feel how innovative ideas start bouncing in your mind. You start noticing how you let go of strong assumptions, and accept that, especially in a field as ever changing as AI, leaving a classroom with more questions than answers is not a failure, it’s a progress. Questions like: what must countries do to stay competitive in AI? What ethical boundaries must be drawn? How can we ensure data diversity and inclusion? And I know, even if it’s only the second day of the module, with these studies, my thoughts are stretched out like alleyways narrow at first, then opening into wide courtyards of new possibilities.
I went on a walk today. It was Thursday, during the second module of the AI for Business programme. After a day full of lectures and discussions, I slowed my pace over the cobblestones, making my way toward the formal hall at St Hilda’s College. They call it the golden hour for a reason when the sun dips low, casting Magdalen’s spires and ancient walls in warm light, for a moment, the silhouettes passing by feel timeless, as if they are C S Lewis, J R R Tolkien, and other scholars from the past strolling among us. Formal hall is a tradition rooted deeply in Oxford university’s history a ritual of shared conversation and ceremony. Fittingly, St Hilda’s was Oxford’s last women-only college, opening its doors to men only in 2008. Tonight, diversity is everywhere: sixty classmates from London to Hong Kong, Dubai to New York, each bringing distinct perspectives shaped by different industries. As evening settled over Oxford, we held our little ceremony, where past and present met beneath the candlelight.
I went on a walk today. The Thames was alive with movement, its surface broken only by the steady rhythm of rowing crews in practice. I paused on the bridge, watching them work toward some unseen finish line. For the moment, I observed the slow, deliberate repetition effort that, from the distance, looked almost effortless. It was a quiet reminder that real progress like real effort is often invisible: early mornings, quiet persistence, the work no one applauds. That afternoon, the same crews took to the river for the Oxford-Cambridge boat race. Tradition hung in the air nearly two centuries of rivalry and ritual. And yet, standing there, it felt just as much about the future. These students weren’t just preparing for a race, but for the challenges of leading in AI, business, and industries still emerging. At Oxford, between intense lectures, and late-night readings, you begin to learn that ambition looks less like a sprint and more like repeated, deliberate effort. The challenges here are constant: the pace of ideas, the speed of change, the push to reimagine old frameworks. Nonetheless, the success is never truly individual but shaped by collaboration and shared momentum qualities that define not just a winning boat, but also a thriving cohort.
After the walking tour, our Friday was spent exploring the changing landscape of AI, and discussing how each of us can shape its impact on business, society, and our personal lives. Reflecting on the conversations in class, full of passionate, action-driven individuals raising critical questions, I thought about the parallels between our conversations, and the stories of the past. The call, which I received on Sunday evening from a classmate, to discuss the urgency of AI strategies for countries like Lithuania and Poland, feels like a confirmation that we all shared a similar sentiment, asking ourselves, 'What can I do today?' The same way, as Oxonians in the early 20th century studied penicillin more effectively, leading to its mass production and saving countless lives, we are at a crossroads, shaping the future with our choices and actions.
And one of those saved lives was that of the dad of David, our tour guide, who guided us through Oxford’s chilly yet charming streets and historic college courtyards, uncovering not just the stories of the past but also the values of intelligence, action, and purpose that have shaped the students of University of Oxford for centuries.
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