Harvard Business School incorporated AI avatars of its instructors into its eight-week, $699 HBS Foundry bootcamp for entrepreneurs, using technology built by startup HeyGen to provide individualized feedback during practice pitches and board meetings, supplementing weekly live instructor sessions. New York Times reporter Sarah Kessler tested the system by pitching an AI-generated version of Flybridge Capital co-founder Jeff Bussgang, reporting that the avatar, much like its real counterpart, was unconvinced by her business concept, though she noted the digital version displayed a notably fixed smile throughout.
Project director Katharina Rings said the AI component was originally conceived as a simpler chatbot experience, but shifted toward a more guided format after students requested it following an initial trial release. Despite broader skepticism some college students have expressed toward AI tools, Foundry participants reportedly responded positively to the avatars. Bussgang acknowledged that encountering his own digital likeness felt somewhat unsettling, but said his students had embraced the feature enthusiastically.
