When Chancellor Sam Hawgood announced that UCSF will gain institution-wide access to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, it marked a major step forward in supporting safe, secure, and ethical use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in research, education, and operations. Behind the scenes, Supply Chain Management (SCM) played a pivotal role in making it happen.  

One week before the State of the University, UCSF was asked to finalize the agreement to ensure the announcement could move forward. Although a systemwide University of California (UC) agreement with Open AI was already in place, significant work needed to be done locally to validate terms, establish supplier onboarding, and ensure compliance with UC policies.  

Over the course of a few days, teams across UCSF collaborated. SCM Supplier Registration’s Ruvic De La Rosa and Roscelle Arceo expedited the supplier registration process, ensuring OpenAI was onboarded promptly. At the same time, SCM Strategic Sourcing’ Susan Riddle reviewed the UCOP contract, compared the terms against OpenAI’s proposal, and guided IT and internal partners through what should—and shouldn’t—appear in the final documents. As the requisition came together, SCM Buyer Leonard Casanares prioritized the deal, tracked down missing paperwork, resolved risk issues, and verified compliance with UC policy. In close partnership with SCM, IT’s Hannah Chin and Mary Williamson assembled and completed an accurate requisition that enabled all subsequent SCM steps to move efficiently. Through this tight collaboration and shared urgency, SCM issued the purchase order two days before the deadline. 

SCM’s work on this agreement highlights the expertise, coordination, and precision required to deliver complex, high-impact procurements on short notice. It is an example of how SCM helps to turn UCSF’s vision into operational reality.  

“This project shows what Strategic Procurement does best; we turn ideas into actionable results. Our team’s rapid collaboration opened the door for UCSF to shape the future of secure, responsible AI, and I can’t say enough about the professionalism and skill demonstrated by all involved.” Andrew Clark, Executive Director, Strategic Procurement