• AI masterclass: An introduction to AI’s general impact, ethical application and its role in business transformation and hybrid teams • AI lab : A co-creative space where students and experts explore challenges and develop initial AI solutions through human-AI collaboration • A dvanced AI lab: A module focused on finding solutions to real-world business challenges, allowing students to apply subject matter expertise in a high-stakes environment • AI ventures: In collaboration with the Kent Innovation entity currently being developed, this final stage involves testing and scaling AI-first product and service innovations, involving investors and commercial licensing. This structure ensures that students don’t just learn about AI, but master it by solving complex real-world problems. The aim is to move away from outdated learning standards, such as static exams and degrees, and towards a skills portfolio that functions more like a GitHub repository than a traditional CV. A collaborative ecosystem The AI for Business Accelerator programme is not just for students; it’s also designed to provide a collaborative ecosystem for industry leaders. World-famous brands, including German automotive giant BMW and San Francisco-based software firm Databricks have already joined the accelerator because they recognise the following advantages: • Preparation: Helping organisations get ready for shifts in work and value creation by building strategic skills • Innovation: Most legacy systems are not prepared for human-AI hybrid setups. By working with students who have greater cognitive flexibility, partners can test new ways of working alongside AI agents in a safe environment • Leadership: Participation positions companies at the forefront of the AI transformation landscape • Participation: Engaging in the programme ultimately creates an AI innovation ‘flywheel’, where every interaction between users, systems and data creates high-quality feedback loops that fill internal knowledge systems. Co-creation & the future of work Tomorrow’s leaders must understand the business implications of introducing a new general-purpose technology, such as AI. The Productivity J-Curve model, for example, offers an important illustration of how organisations can expect an initial period of seemingly reduced productivity. This period is marked by heavy investment in ‘intangibles’ – restructuring assets and rebuilding processes – that only later manifest as measurable growth. The world of work is currently in this learning curve. To exit it successfully, we must address the
metabolic rate at which organisations can adapt to the influx of new intelligence. We also face the historical challenge of reskilling at least 50 per cent of the workforce. From our perspective, ‘reskilling’ here does not just mean technical training; it also means helping knowledge workers become innovation workers who can access their deeply experiential, tacit knowledge to trigger breakthroughs. The journey from AI as a tool to AI as a creative thinking partner is nearly complete and we are no longer idle passengers. By embracing such a symbiotic concept of intelligence, we can close the gap between passive prediction and the active co-creation of an economically and socially desirable future. Kent Business School’s AI for Business Accelerator stands at this frontier. We invite the AMBA & BGA community to engage with our ‘co-intelligence sandboxes’ where we are offering a controlled environment for experimentation and help us develop the leadership and innovation mindsets required for the AI-first economy. Together, we will not merely ensure that human intelligence remains relevant, but that it is the essential spark that drives the next era of global progress.
Thomas Hirschmann is a lecturer in business analytics at Kent Business School, University of Kent, where he teaches innovation and AI. He is also the founder and CEO of CoreCortex and its sister company, Behavioural Economy
18 Business Impact • ISSUE 1 • 2026
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