A suite of generative AI chatbots and tutors used by Bryant University students, faculty and staff has been honored in the 2025 US CIO 100 Awards, which recognize innovative organizations that exemplify the highest level of strategic and operational excellence in IT.
Bryant’s IT team, faculty and academic administrators, and the University Marketing and Communications department were recognized for developing the student-facing chatbot Ask Tupper; an AI Tutor called Strategy Guru that is used by professors and students in the university’s BUS 400 Business Policy capstone course; and Brand Guru, a chatbot used by staff to ensure that creative, marketing, and other content aligns with Bryant’s institutional identity.
Bryant is one of 100 organizations commended in 2025 by CIO magazine, published by Foundry and aimed at chief information officers (CIOs).
“The CIO 100 Awards recognize IT leaders who drive innovation, transformation, and business success through technology. With an exceptionally high caliber of submissions each year, winning a CIO 100 Award is a true honor, highlighting the bold vision, strategic excellence, and groundbreaking impact of the most influential CIOs shaping the future of digital enterprise,” says Elizabeth Cutler, content director for the CIO 100 Symposium & Awards.
"Winning a CIO 100 Award is a true honor, highlighting the bold vision, strategic excellence, and groundbreaking impact of the most influential CIOs shaping the future of digital enterprise."
Chuck LoCurto, vice president and CIO for Information Services at Bryant, says the nationwide, multi-industry award — which drew more than 400 entries — is a significant accomplishment. While the CIO 100 Award was given to Bryant University as an institution, LoCurto credits the work of his colleagues on the school’s AI Executive Steering Committee, Bryant Provost and Chief Academic Officer Rupendra Paliwal, Ph.D. and Edinaldo Tebaldi, Ph.D., Bryant's vice president of strategy and institutional effectiveness, as well as project team members Mike Roberto, trustee professor of Management in Bryant’s College of Business; Director of Technology and Innovation Dave Gannon; Assistant Director and Manager of Research and Instruction Services Allison Papini; and Senior Manager of Digital Marketing and Content Tim Dumont.
Alliant Digital, Bryant’s AI technology partner, also “did a ton of work,” says LoCurto, who notes: “We had the ideas, the people and the content, but they helped us tremendously with the technology."
The AI tools honored in the CIO 100 Award is "transformative on every front, including for academics, operational efficiency, and raising awareness of the Bryant brand,” says LoCurto.
Ask Tupper is Bryant’s version of a generative AI chatbot, explains LoCurto. "You can ask any questions, from what are the prerequisites for a class, to what to do if I lose my ID card, when is the gym open, or how do I drop or add a class?” he says. “We get a couple of hundred questions a week.”
Developed by Roberto, the AI-powered Strategy Guru is designed to help students understand key concepts and analytical methods associated with the Business Policy course; it’s also being used as a model for similar course-specific chatbots being developed by other Bryant professors.
“It's changing what we teach and how we teach,” part of an AI-focused academic shift championed by Paliwal says LoCurto.
Tebaldi conceived the Brand Guru as part of a broader rebranding initiative at the university that focuses on three archetypes: transformative competitor, experiential problem solver, and confident achiever.
"The Brand Guru assists internal communicators in creating engaging content that aligns with Bryant University's brand personality," he says. "It ensures that all communications reflect the university's identity, enhancing message impact and maintaining brand consistency.”
With about 100 people posting on Bryant's information channels, "it’s almost impossible for a marketing organization to review all of that content," adds LoCurto. "The Brand Guru can help make sure what we write is in sync with the brand. It’s making us more efficient.”
