"Professors are acting as if they are the gateway to knowledge."

I'm not sure your experience properly represents professors. In my experience they are not and do not portray themselves as gateways to knowledge but are merely guides that have traveled certain areas of knowledge countless times and can aid or equip you for your own journey through this knowledge.

I have had a mix of formal education and self learning each system of learning has its benefits.

"Artificial intelligence is making us smarter because it gives us access to information and databases we weren’t able to access before."

Can you elaborate with a specific example?