At the intersection of AI and Liberal Arts

Back in college, I remember standing on stage, reciting The Tyger by William Blake. 

I felt a rush of anxiety – the heavy breaths, the butterflies.

It was as if the poem was talking to me:

“Tyger, Tyger burning bright,

In the forests of the night;

What immortal hand or eye,

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?”

When I finished, there was no clapping, just eyes staring.

I was left to wonder, did I do good?

You see I grew up with my nose stuck in a book, not quite sure how to be around people.

In college, I started as a drifter, coming to class and spending time with friends. I had no drive to go beyond what was expected. 

Yet there were little moments that made time pass quicker.

I remember me and my friends inside a vacant classroom watching LOST on a PSP.    

There was also a professor who playfully teased a report mentioning Gabriel Garcia Marquez as G. G. Marquez, as if my classmate and Marquez were friends.

We read the works of Rizal, Tiempo, Tolkien, among others, exploring worlds beyond the classroom.

It was only after I graduated and took on greater responsibilities that I realized those little moments shaped my humanity.

These halls are filled with faces and stories who raised me at a time when I did not know myself.

Now, it’s your turn.

You are entering adulthood at a time of great shift in human history — a time defined by artificial intelligence.

AI is here. Disruption has begun. According to the 2025 Reuters Digital News Report, more journalists are using AI to support their newsroom. 

The New York Times, for example, uses it for summarization, editing, and coding. BBC created a department for AI-driven content. 

Across industries, AI is used to write reports, design products, answer responses, even make podcasts, songs, or short videos.

But progress comes with a cost. Automation is reshaping industries. Amazon announced 14,000 job cuts. Microsoft and Meta announced theirs.

There is also a growing body of research shedding light on AI. 

A BBC study found that 51% of AI-generated answers had errors, misattribution, and lack of context, with some inventing headlines or linking to sources that didn’t exist. 

A Nature study found that when evaluating resumes, ChatGPT assumed women were younger and less experienced than men counterparts.

And despite all these, AI is still used as a source of information. In a McKinsey study of international companies, 78% reported to have adopted AI in at least one business function this year.

With all this advancement, one thing to me is clear, it is important to keep the human in the loop.

At a Google News AI Lab program which I am part of, among the discussions were how to keep humans involved when building AI—to ensure fairness and accuracy in its output.

Technology, no matter how advanced, is imprinted by the people who build it.

“We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us.” It mirrors our biases, our beliefs, our humanity. 

In the rush to build smarter machines, we risk forgetting what makes us human. That’s where your Liberal Arts education becomes an advantage.

My studies, and the little moments I had in between, made me more human. More empathetic. More grounded. This strengthened my moral compass and became a source of strength amidst tech transitions.

When I started in media, I fostered this quiet hope that stories could change the world for the better. I was young, “the master of my fate, the captain of my soul.”

My mindset was: tell the news because people need to know it, for their safety when it comes to calamities or for their understanding of how acts of government impacted their lives. 

That was how I got through long hours, talking to people stranded on rooftops affected by Typhoon Yolanda, or reporting what to do at the height of COVID-19. Or even when my wife, who was then a reporter, and I were targeted by trolls and vitriol just because of our profession. 

I knew that what I was doing—no matter how small or tedious—helped people and, in its own way, built the nation.

And as I look back, I see that meaning comes from these small acts of purpose. 

Now, you are about to begin the next chapter of your story.

According to a Randstad study, younger generations are embracing AI more than others: to learn new skills, to find new jobs, to help solve problems. 

At the same time, nearly half of young adults feel anxious about its impact on their careers – it is the tyger staring back. 

If you are among those who are anxious as to what the future brings, remember this: AI is a tool. It is up to you to wield its potential. 

And remember this: you are of your own flesh, mind, heart, and soul. 

There are things AI cannot achieve, things that only a human can do.

And those little moments that are yours, will matter more than ever.

They are shaping who you will become, what actions you will take, and what you will value in life.

With this, here are a few things I’ve learned which could help in your journey:

Remain open to learning and feedback. 

Be proactive in discussing issues. 

Accept the bad days – they always pass.

Own your mistakes, that’s what separates the good from the great.

Do the difficult things, that’s how you grow. 

Take breaks. Be with people you love. Let life, not work, define you.

Learn the value of relationships. When problems arise, in work and in life, it is often the people beside you who will help you through. 

And as Liberal Arts students, use words or storytelling as a tool. That will be your secret weapon.  

Before I close, I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the proud parents and caregivers of this graduating class. 

As a new parent myself, I’m inspired by what you have achieved today — you have supported a new generation of free thinkers, storytellers, leaders and changemakers. Their bright future will be your legacy.

Often the Arts are considered as a path less traveled. Take it from me, I still have an existential crisis about my Literature course every now and then. 

Yet this was the path that I took and this is where life led me, in front of you two decades since I last walked the halls of Miguel. “I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

You are at the forefront of this new path in your lives.

Keep learning. Keep questioning. Keep creating. Keep embracing your humanity.

Above all, keep living.

The world is made of stories, not data.

Yours is still being written. 

It’s up to you to turn the next page.

Thank you and congratulations.

Justin Joyas is the senior business development manager of GMA News Online. This was part of a speech he gave for the college recognition rites for the graduands of the College of Liberal Arts of Term 3 Academic Year 2024-2025 at De La Salle University - Manila.