\n<\/p>\n
As Harvard Business School seeks to expand its reach, it\u2019s leaning on AI avatars to provide individual feedback.<\/p>\n
These avatars were created by a startup called HeyGen and are included in the eight-week, $699 HBS Foundry bootcamp for entrepreneurs. The program offers live sessions with instructors every week, but the AI avatars are the ones providing feedback during practice pitches and board meetings.<\/p>\n
New York Times reporter Sarah Kessler actually tried this out herself<\/a> by pitching an AI-generated copy of Flybridge Capital co-founder Jeff Bussgang. Apparently, both the real Bussgang and his simulacra were unimpressed by her plan to build \u201cUber for bananas,\u201d but Kessler said the virtual version offered a noticeably frozen smile during her pitch.<\/p>\n Project director Katharina Rings said she initially envisioned the AI component as something closer to a chatbot. However, after HBS released a trial version, students said they wanted a more guided experience.<\/p>\n And while some college students haven\u2019t been shy about expressing their negative feelings towards AI<\/a>, Foundry participants told Kessler they like the avatars. As for Bussgang, he acknowledged his digital copy is a little \u201ccreepy,\u201d but he said, \u201cMy students love it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n