1 week ago
Harvard’s AI Faculty Clones Now Teach a Startup Bootcamp
Harvard Business School created computer versions of some of its professors.
These versions can talk with people who want to start companies.
The online course helps students develop ideas and practice pitching them.
It also lets them rehearse sales meetings and board meetings.
The AI advisers are trained to ask difficult questions instead of agreeing with every idea.
People can use them whenever they want, without waiting for a real professor.
Some participants say this makes practice easier and more realistic.
One professor called his avatar a little creepy, even though students like it.
Harvard says human teachers and classmates are still an important part of the program.
Harvard Business School launched H.B.S. Foundry, an eight-week online entrepreneurship bootcamp priced at $699.
The program uses AI agents trained on faculty expertise, avatar-led practice, peer forums, and live sessions.
Participants practice startup pitches, sales meetings, board sessions, and investor conversations with AI simulations.
The AI avatars are designed to challenge founders rather than immediately approve their ideas.
Supporters say Foundry expands access to entrepreneurship guidance, while some users and faculty find the avatars unsettling and emphasize human interaction.
- Who
- Harvard Business School, its faculty, aspiring founders, and participating universities.
- What
- The school introduced H.B.S. Foundry, an online startup bootcamp using AI faculty avatars and agents.
- Where
- The program is delivered online and has been tested with more than 100 universities across 50 states.
- When
- The project began in 2024, underwent an October trial, and launched in April; the course runs for eight weeks.
- Why
- To help more founders receive startup guidance and practice than human faculty alone can support.
Supporters of AI-Enabled Access
Concerns About Human Connection
Expanding mentorship
Supporters of AI-Enabled Access
Supporters say always-available AI tools help universities serve more founders than human staff can accommodate.
Concerns About Human Connection
Critics and some participants note that AI cannot replace the importance of human interaction and peer communities.
Realism and trust
Supporters of AI-Enabled Access
Harvard says video avatars increased user preference and trust, while users praised realistic practice sessions.
Concerns About Human Connection
Jeff Bussgang described his own simulation as a little creepy, and the reported avatar showed repetitive movements.
Feedback style
Supporters of AI-Enabled Access
Faculty designed the agents to be tough so founders would receive challenging feedback rather than automatic approval.
Concerns About Human Connection
The simulations provide artificial responses, meaning participants may still need live faculty, investors, and customers for meaningful judgment.
Key facts
- Program
- H.B.S. Foundry
- Provider
- Harvard Business School
- Price
- $699, described in the article as about Rs 67,000
- Duration
- Eight weeks
- Avatar technology
- Avatars were created with HeyGen
- Testing
- More than 100 universities across 50 states
- Participation
- About 760 founders in summer sessions discovered Foundry through their schools
- Payment
- About 45 percent of summer participants paid individually; the rest were sponsored
Quotes
Jeff Bussgang
Harvard Business School senior lecturer and Flybridge Capital co-founder whose AI avatar appears in Foundry
“They love the AI. They’re using the AI, they’re learning a lot. But it keeps coming back to humanity.”
theprint.in
“We literally would have somebody spend 10 hours with the thing, just sort of trying and trying”
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