tech
Harvard’s $699 startup bootcamp has professors who never sleep–but that’s because they’re AI clones
The newest Harvard Business School professor never sleeps, can hear the same pitch 50 times and technically isn’t an instructor at all.
TL;DR
- Harvard Business School is offering a $699 online startup bootcamp featuring AI clones of its professors.
- The AI clones allow aspiring founders to practice investor pitches, sales calls, and board meetings repeatedly.
- The program is part of HBS Foundry, an 'AI-native digital workspace' for entrepreneurs.
- Seven HBS professors and senior lecturers have had AI versions created for the program.
- The goal is to provide founders with more preparation and challenge their thinking before live interactions.
- This initiative is part of a broader trend of universities experimenting with AI in education, alongside examples like Georgia Tech and Imperial Business School.
- The bootcamp is not an academic credit program but aims to extend entrepreneurial support broadly.
- Experts note that AI can simulate many repetitive professor tasks but cannot fully replicate human connection, recognition of potential, or genuine care.
- The use of AI in education raises questions about efficiency versus the perceived value of an elite education.