With support from Dr. Nachiketa Tiwari, Professor and Head of the Department, as well as Assistant Professor Dr. Amar Behera from Department of Design, IIT Kanpur, we came up an experiment to conduct the first of its kind in-person design thinking session where AI would be a facilitator and participant. On March 19th, 2024, we ran this workshop with 20 students. This was First-ever AI Facilitated In-Person Design Thinking Session ever conducted in the country.

Since a long time prior to this workshop, I have been exploring with some of the custom-tuned models to explore the possibility of creating a non-evasive approach to integrate AI into In-person Design Thinking sessions, and creating a collection of tools clubbed under a name "CoSpace" - meaning tools for collaborative space for human-AI interaction. However this collaboration is not expected for in virtual white board, rather the approach was a baby step towards AI collaborating with human participants in a physical space during Design Thinking sessions.

The participants were asked to participate in a conventional manner using post-its and flip-chart canvases. The participants were grouped into 4 groups (initially planned for 5 though).

Design thinking stands as a pivotal framework for fostering innovation, providing a structured approach that emphasizes empathy, creativity, and iteration to tackle complex problems effectively. Widely adopted across industries, its human-centered methodology has become a cornerstone for organizations striving to develop user-centric solutions that resonate with their target audience. In today's rapidly evolving technological landscape, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) has also become pivotal in var-ious aspects of problem-solving and innovation. As Design Thinking sessions thrive on collaboration, requiring active participation from both participants and facilitators to foster creativity and drive problem-solving, can AI act as a participant and/or a facilitator, en-riching the collaborative process by providing valuable contributions to the brainstorming and decision-making phases? The proposed workshop will focus into the theme of partnering with AI as a collaborative ally within the framework of Design Thinking sessions. The workshop aims to facilitate a deeper understanding of AI's role as a fa-cilitator in the Design-Thinking especially in the stages of Empathize and Ideation stages. Participants will be introduced to custom-developed AI software tailored to augment the Design Thinking process. Through a series of interactive exercises and real-world case studies, attendees will embark on a journey to harness the collective intelligence of both human and ma-chine.