Harvard Business School launched an eight-week entrepreneurship program in 2026 that uses AI-generated avatars of its instructors to deliver personalized feedback to participants. The program, called HBS Foundry, costs $699 and is designed to expand the school’s reach to a broader audience of entrepreneurs.
The avatars were built by startup HeyGen and are deployed during practice pitches and simulated board meetings. While the program includes live weekly sessions with real instructors, the AI avatars handle the individual feedback component.
New York Times reporter Sarah Kessler tested the experience firsthand by pitching an AI replica of Flybridge Capital co-founder Jeff Bussgang with a concept she described as “Uber for bananas.” Both the real Bussgang and his digital counterpart were unimpressed with the idea. Kessler noted, however, that the virtual version maintained a noticeably frozen smile throughout her pitch.
HBS Foundry project director Katharina Rings said the AI component was originally conceived as something closer to a standard chatbot. After a trial release, student feedback pushed the program toward a more guided experience.
Participant response to the avatars has been largely positive. Foundry students told Kessler they appreciate the AI versions, even as some college students more broadly have voiced skepticism toward AI tools in education. Bussgang himself acknowledged that his digital copy is a little “creepy,” but added, “My students love it.”
The program suggests that business schools may increasingly turn to AI-generated personas to scale personalized instruction — though how widely this approach is adopted across other institutions remains to be seen.
Source: TechCrunch