When 90 Northeastern University-Oakland students stepped onto NVIDIA's Santa Clara campus this fall, they didn't just come to learn–they came to build, question, experiment, and contribute. Over the course of a single day, they became collaborators in one of the world's most ambitious accessibility initiatives: The Signs Project, an open-source effort developing AI tools to interpret American Sign Language (ASL) better. 

Many of these students are part of the D'Amore-McKim School of Business, and the trip is a defining example of experiential learning in action–an excellent example of how students can apply their business skills in an established technology environment, gaining real-world insight that can't be replicated solely in a classroom. 

Rather than observing a demonstration, students sat down with NVIDIA engineers and trained AI models themselves. They uploaded short ASL video clips, adjusted parameters, and immediately saw how models became more accurate or less so. 

As first-year business student Arnav Mukherjee (DMSB'29) put it, “They let us mess with actual training models. Like, change parameters and watch the AI get dumber or smarter in real-time.” 

For many students, it was the first time they had seen behind the curtain of modern AI systems. The hands-on experience demystified the technology while revealing the immense responsibility that comes with building accessible tools. 

Teaching Computers to Understand a Visual Language 

Students directly supported The Signs Project, which aims to build the largest ASL dataset in history. By contributing to ASL video recordings, they helped train models capable of better detecting and understanding sign language, technology that could ultimately power real-time translation tools for the Deaf community. 

Soumya Gupta, DMSB'29, reflected on this impact, saying, “They're literally teaching computers to understand an entire language expressed through motion… What tied the whole day together was the mission: AI should work for everyone.” 

NVIDIA's ASL interpreters also shared personal stories that grounded the work in human experience, reminding students that inclusive AI is not just a technical challenge but also has the potential to transform communication access globally. 

The day went far beyond model training. Students gained rare exposure to the full ecosystem behind world-changing technologies, including: 

  • Product Marketing: Where storytelling and technical positioning shape the future of humanoid robotics. Yes, the exact humanoids CEO Jensen Huang brings onstage during keynotes. 
  • Engineering: Where AI datasets become the backbone of next-generation tools for accessibility and beyond. 
  • Finance & Supply Chain: Where students learned that a single DGX unit may pass through 14 countries, and that one customs delay can cost $2 million per day. 
  • Logistics & Operations: Where global coordination reveals the complexity behind the technologies powering modern AI. 

“Some days stay with you,” says Associate Professor Carol Theokary, who accompanied the group. “And today at NVIDIA is one of them.” 

For first-year student Reese Balemian, DMSB'29, it was equally transformative: “I never thought I would be able to visit a company of this magnitude. I am extremely grateful… this was truly impactful experiential learning.” 

Ekaterina Karniouchina, Director of Business Programs at Northeastern-Oakland, organized the visit. She emphasizes that this wasn't a tech tout, but an opportunity for students to contribute to work that matters. 

“Our students weren't just observers. They became contributors… A powerful reminder that when technology, education, and purpose come together, everyone wins,” she says. 

NVIDIA's willingness to open its doors and share its research with undergraduates defines a shared commitment: building technology with students, for people, and in service of inclusion is a rewarding path forward. 

“Experiences like this shape how I think about the kind of leader and builder I want to become,” says Gupta. 

For D'Amore-McKim, the visit reflects the school's philosophy that business education is most potent when students experience how ideas move from concept to real-world impact. We learn across borders and lead with impact