NEXT-GEN TECHNOLOGY
professional development, will be more susceptible to disruption by AI-driven education providers. Bridging AI & human support For those already working in a business school, the impact of AI is likely to be less radical and more evolutionary. In the short term, the future will be characterised by a hybrid approach. One AI start-up exploring this hybrid future is a recent Times Higher Education award winner, Tutello. This London-based education firm is collaborating with several business schools to develop a human-+-AI tutoring system. The platform provides personalised tutoring and support through AI while ensuring that human educators remain central to the learning process. By putting faculty in control of the content and interactions, Tutello ensures that educators can guide and oversee the AI’s responses, minimising the risk of inaccuracies and ensuring alignment with the institution’s educational goals. This kind of technology – which aims to enhance the student experience and make the lives of faculty easier while integrating with existing IT infrastructure – is likely to gain most traction within incumbent institutions for the foreseeable future. Navigating the AI landscape The adoption of AI in management education will be a complex journey, fraught with challenges but also filled with significant opportunities. As we have discussed, this journey is likely to take longer than we all anticipate due to factors such as capital constraints, organisational barriers and legislative hurdles. Incumbent business schools can strategically navigate these challenges to arrive at solutions that enrich the student experience across the board. AI start-ups such as Tutello will enable this hybrid model by integrating AI with human support, providing a balanced approach that leverages the strengths of both. AI champions and new entrants to the market will provide beacons for us all by demonstrating what is technically possible. However, the immediate future of management education will be hybrid, with AI serving as a powerful tool to complement and augment human capabilities, rather than replace them. As the landscape evolves, those institutions that can adapt and innovate while maintaining their core values will lead the way in creating a smart, effective and human-centred educational experience for both the educator and student alike.
David Lefevre is a professor of practice in digital innovation at Imperial College Business School and co-founder of Tutello, where he is academic lead. Previously, he led Imperial’s award- winning Edtech Lab, launching the school’s first online courses and delivering more than 220 online modules. After stepping down in 2022, Lefevre began exploring AI applications in education Rosie Loyd is the founders’ associate at Tutello. She graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2023 with a degree in Spanish and contemporary Chinese studies. At Tutello, she is involved in all aspects of operations, from client onboarding
to ongoing support, as well as marketing and communications
reputation and both students and employers are likely to continue to value these attributes. All these factors limit how far along the adoption spectrum incumbents are likely to travel. It is easy to imagine schools adopting digital assistants, but it is more challenging to picture them pursuing paths to a system-level AI. Traditional institutions are unlikely to embrace the radical opportunities afforded by AI automation. The focus of these institutions is therefore likely to be on enhancing the quality of education through AI. The role of new entrants New entrants to the education market, unburdened by existing practices and structures, are likely to advance further along the automation spectrum. Incumbent schools can also foster innovation by creating separate entities at arm’s length, known as ‘skunk works’. Harvard and MIT exemplified this approach with the creation of the edX project. These new players could offer innovative, low-cost educational solutions at scale, challenging established institutions and creating a bifurcated market – one where traditional institutions continue to offer personalised, high-quality education, while new entrants gain traction in the low-cost mass education space. It is also important to note that the more radical forms of AI adoption will occur primarily in the digital realm. Many students, including undergraduates, will still value the campus experience and the personal interaction that comes with it. However, the ‘rest-of-life’ market, which includes lifelong learning and
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Business Impact • ISSUE 4 • 2024
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