36-673 Special Topics: Statistical Principles of Generative AI

9 units, Carnegie Mellon University

Generative artificial intelligence systems are fundamentally statistical models of text and images. The systems are very new, but they rely on well-established ideas about modeling and inference, some of them more than a century old. This course will introduce students to the statistical underpinnings of large language models and image generation models, emphasizing high-level principles over implementation details. It will also examine controversies about generative AI, especially the "artificial general intelligence" versus "cultural technology" debate, in light of those statistical foundations.

Prerequisites: none listed

Offered: Fall 2025

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