, was using a forerunner, GPT-2, as early as 2019, both to teach executives on the technology leadership programme about emerging tech and to write scripts for the videos that accompanied his course.
Katona has little time for ChatGPT naysayers. “I love it. It’s a fantastic educational tool,” he says. “I remember what it was like in high school when there was no internet. Just like Google Search for a previous generation, ChatGPT will become how people access knowledge in this generation. It means we can be much more efficient in education, including executive education.”, enabling it to create new content based on the information it is provided in the form of text, images or audio.
Within executive education specifically, generative AI could be used to create simulations that mimic real-world business interactions, such as negotiations and sales pitches. Executives could use AI as a “study buddy”, with which they practise critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The conversational nature of ChatGPT responses means participants could get immediate personalised feedback beyond that a time-pressed faculty can offer.
Insead Strategy professor Phanish Puranam runs organisation design exercises, in which students use ChatGPT to help generate a wide variety of possible solutions. He is also thinking of using it as a sparring partner, with algorithms critiquing executives’ thoughts and asking them for more explanation.