AI in education sparks debate after Comet-use viral thread
A viral thread about AI helping ace a Coursera course sparked a debate on AI in education, with Perplexity's CEO weighing in on the risks.
When AI Does Your Homework: A Viral Thread, a CEO’s Warning, and Why It Matters
Reference: X.com
The viral moment
A short thread on X showed someone using the Comet browser to finish a Coursera course on AI ethics, and it blew up fast. After the post went viral many people reacted. Some cheered the tech for being clever, while others worried it was a shortcut that skips real learning. The clip made it clear that tools powered by AI can solve course questions almost instantly and that idea alone is shaking up how people think about online learning.
Why the CEO spoke up
The leader of Perplexity didn’t stay quiet. He warned that relying on these tools to complete assignments could be a bad idea, and urged students to use them responsibly rather than just to get certificates. Many saw his remarks as a sign that the company knows this isn’t just a fun demo it could change what credentials mean.
The bigger debate: learning vs. shortcuts
This isn’t just about one browser or one course, it could be about how education itself shifts when answers are a click away. Teachers might need new ways to assess whether a student actually understands a topic, and students will have to decide if they want a certificate or knowledge. Many instructors could start designing assignments that are harder for an AI to fake or they might embrace AI as a study partner, which is fine but also messy, you know what I mean. Some people thinks that if companies can’t tell who really learned something, the value of certifications could drop.
What students and employers might do next
Expect a few reactions: stricter honor codes, proctored exams, and more emphasis on project-based work where the process matters as much as the result. Employers might also change interview tactics to test for understanding directly, or ask for live problem-solving during hiring. It seems like credentials could become less trusted unless the industry agrees on new standards for verification and that will take time.
(And yes while AI can help you study faster, it could also teach you the wrong lesson if you let it do all the thinking for you; that’s a long-term cost people rarely count.)
The short version: the viral thread showed a capability, the Perplexity CEO flagged the risk, and now schools and companies might have to rethink how they judge learning and merit this could reshape education and hiring in the years to come.
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