IgniteAI

IgniteAI is the umbrella name Canvas has given to new and upcoming features that use LLMs (large language models) in some way. Two of these features, IgniteAI Search and Translations for Discussions & Announcements, are now available in Canvas at Emory University.

Search in a Course

When it is enabled, all course users, including students, can use IgniteAI Search (formerly known as Smart Search) to search for results in several types of course content: Announcements, Assignment descriptions, Discussion topic posts, and Pages. This feature lets users search in one course at a time. IgniteAI Search is enabled by default in sandbox courses, and teachers can enable it in their OPUS courses.

To enable IgniteAI Search in academic courses:

  1. Go to Settings > Feature Options and enable the “Search for Courses” option, then
  2. Go to Settings > Navigation, enable “IgniteAI Search” in the course menu and click Save.

Search's model is Cohere Embed Multilingual running on AWS Bedrock. Canvas’s database stores the search index of course contents after the model generates it. The model does not store or train on the data it receives about course contents.

For further reading about Search:

Translations for Discussions & Announcements

When it is enabled, all course users, including students, can use Translations for Discussions & Announcements to translate between the following languages: Catalan, Chinese (Simplified), Dutch, English, French, German, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish, Swedish. Teachers may enable Translations for Discussions & Announcements in their courses.

To enable Translations for Discussions & Announcements in specific courses:

  • Go to Settings > Feature Options and enable the “IgniteAI Translations for Discussions & Announcements” option.

Translations of Discussions & Announcements are generated by Claude Haiku 3. The model will not store or be trained on discussion & announcement data receives to generate translations.

For further reading about Translations for Discussions & Announcements:

Other IgniteAI Features

Teaching and Learning Technologies will continue to evaluate Canvas IgniteAI features that have not been unlocked or released including Translations for Inbox, Discussion Summaries, Discussion Insights, Rubric Generator, and New Quizzes Question Authoring. Some of these features will become paid add-ons at a future date. If you have questions about any of these features, email us at classes@emory.edu.