The Blakeney Institute for Future-Minded AI

Our Mission

Co-founded by Alyssa Schoonmaker and Sophia Tabibian, two 12th graders at Phillips Academy Andover, the Blakeney Institute for Future-Minded AI equips the next generation with the critical skills and ethical mindset to harness artificial intelligence for positive change.

Ever since the rise of generative AI, Alyssa and Sophia noticed a fundamental issue: young people are increasingly using AI to supplement critical thinking and creativity, rather than supercharge it.

The Problem

Alyssa and Sophia are establishing a series of initiatives that empower Gen-Z to use applications of AI to enhance rather than replace human reasoning and creativity. Their first program, the WIF AI Fellowship, offers 16 ambitious young women the opportunity to explore the benefits and limitations of AI tools across four different asset classes and multiple industries.

The Solution

Learn more

Why “Blakeney”?

Dr. Aly Blakeney was the first professor who believed in Alyssa and Sophia’s partnership. In 2023, she agreed to advise Alyssa and Sophia in founding Women in Business & Finance @ Phillips Academy, which now serves 160+ young female students. At the Institute, Alyssa and Sophia aspire to embody Dr. Blakeney’s spirit of novelty, boldness, and ethical innovation.

Why “Future-Minded”?

Because the young generation is our priority and our future. We want our peers to feel empowered in the age of AI and innovation, not disabled.

Our Advisory Board

Dr. Samy Bengio

Senior Director of Machine Learning Research at Apple
Samy Bengio (PhD in computer science, University of Montreal, 1993) is a senior director of machine learning research at Apple since 2021 and adjunct professor at EPFL since 2024. Before that, he was a distinguished scientist at Google Research since 2007 where he was heading part of the Google Brain team, and at IDIAP in the early 2000s where he co-wrote the well-known open-source Torch machine learning library.
His research interests span many areas of machine learning such as deep architectures, representation learning, vision and language processing and more recently, reasoning.
He is action editor of the Journal of Machine Learning Research and on the board of the NeurIPS foundation. He was on the editorial board of the Machine Learning Journal, has been program chair (2017) and general chair (2018) of NeurIPS, program chair of ICLR (2015, 2016), general chair of BayLearn (2012-2015), MLMI (2004-2006), as well as NNSP (2002), and on the program committee of several international conferences such as NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, ECML and IJCAI. More details can be found at http://bengio.abracadoudou.com.
Tarja Stephens

Founder of Leaders of the Future
Tarja Stephens is an internationally recognized advisor and keynote speaker with over two decades of experience at the intersection of technology, business strategy, and talent development. As a Finnish-American business leader and entrepreneur, Tarja empowers CEOs and executives to drive successful AI transformations by focusing on the people who bring technology to life. Her human-centric approach emphasizes equipping teams with the skills and mindset needed to thrive amid exponential technological change. By aligning innovation with workforce readiness and personal intelligence, she fosters ethical integration and inclusive innovation that empowers leaders to shape the future.
As founder of Leaders of the Future, a global leadership network, and managing partner of AI Opportunity Agency, an advisory group guiding senior executives in the practical integration of AI into leadership roles, Tarja is a trusted advisor to CEOs and global initiatives. She has collaborated with leading organizations to reshape workforce dynamics and build future-ready teams.
A sought-after speaker at global forums, Tarja inspires leaders to invest in their people—and in themselves. She emphasizes the urgent need to upskill workforces to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving economy, ensuring people are equipped for the transformative impact of AI. Tarja encourages leaders to redefine leadership and cultivate uniquely human qualities as the superpowers of future leadership. She believes that investing in people creates a ripple effect, unlocking AI’s potential and advancing bold, inclusive innovation.
Dr. Aly Blakeney

Professor at Phillips Academy
Dr. Aly Blakeney (Dr. B) is an Instructor of Economics and World History at Phillips Academy Andover. Her research interests primarily involve young adult financial wellness, particularly in regard to accessing and completing higher education. She is a member of the Higher Education Financial Wellness Alliance (HEFWA) Research Committee and (full disclosure) the faculty advisor to Women in Finance.
Dr. B received her bachelor's in Economics and Political Science from the University of California, Merced, her master's in Resource and Applied Economics from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and her PhD in Economic Education from the University of Delaware. She lives on campus with her husband and service dog, Nanook (aka, PA's one and only sentient teddy bear).