Interview for Jornal de Negócios: One of the Best Tools we have to Create Impact is Entrepreneurship
In an exclusive interview with Jornal de Negócios, Paul Cheek, a Professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT Sloan, discusses the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on entrepreneurship.
Artificial intelligence will change the rules in the way we generate ideas and create companies. This is the belief of Paul Cheek, professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT Sloan, in an exclusive interview with Jornal de Negócios.
As a Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Paul Cheek is responsible for the entrepreneurship discipline. He guides The Lisbon MBA students through an intensive week as part of the MIT Immersion component in Boston. Recently, he was in Lisbon to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the collaboration, taking the opportunity to give a masterclass on the “Future of Entrepreneurship”, and spoke exclusively to Jornal de Negócios in a relaxed conversation about the future and changing the world.
How was the “masterclass” in Lisbon?
It was amazing. It was good to see all the students engaged and embracing the future of entrepreneurship. It was interesting to see, as we analyzed some of the advantages and disadvantages of artificial intelligence (AI) in the entrepreneurial process, the different ideas people have. That’s the discussion I think entrepreneurs need to have for the future.
In fact, my first question was exactly about that. This partnership (between The Lisbon MBA and MIT Sloan) is 15 years old. A lot has changed in entrepreneurship and technology. Is it now harder or easier to create a startup?
Entrepreneurship has always been difficult, and it will continue to be. We are seeing more entrepreneurs, and I think these entrepreneurs are getting stronger. I think they will continue to get stronger. When we look at the last 10 to 15 years of entrepreneurship, we have seen a lot of change. And we will see even more changes in the next 12 months, simply because the starting point is changing. The bar is rising.
And AI is part of that?
Certainly. We are seeing the entrepreneurial process accelerate dramatically. Building a business previously took a long time: months, even years. The best entrepreneurs had an advantage because they had the training, experience, or education that would allow them to create a comprehensive, high-quality, and rigorous business strategy. And that will no longer be the case. We are on the verge of universal access to comprehensive, high-quality, and rigorous business planning as a result of artificial intelligence. And that gives anyone, anywhere in the world with internet access, and an idea, access to these comprehensive, high-quality, and rigorous business plans. So competition will increase. The ease with which one can start a company, I don’t think will change much. I just think the assumptions will be different. It’s no longer just about strategy. It’s no longer just about planning. It’s about knowing your customers well. Entrepreneurs should now focus on their leadership skills. Because getting a customer is about getting people on board with our idea, our strategy. And if we already have a first draft of that strategy given by AI, it’s important to know what to do from there.
But looking to the future, what will be the outcome of all this acceleration in the entrepreneurial world?
I think it will have a fairly dramatic impact on the market. We will see new markets, new players, new companies. We will see a faster pace of innovation. I think within large organizations, we will see the need for a faster rate of change. People will need to move more quickly to stay relevant. On the other hand, we will have more startups and more entrepreneurs better positioned to address the most pressing problems in society.
What is the prevailing feeling among your students regarding all these changes?
They are excited. We see a growing interest in entrepreneurship and building new companies, and the main driving force for a student is usually to have an impact. They want to have an impact. One of the best tools we have to create impact is entrepreneurship.
And regarding market fluctuations, what happens in the world – wars, inflation – and all these global changes? How do you address that?
Challenges can also be seen as opportunities. And an entrepreneurial mind will see that. Great entrepreneurs are better prepared to react more quickly to changes. In a more practical sense, yes, we know that market fluctuations can impact a company’s ability to raise funding. But if you are building a good business with strong fundamentals, you have to be able to justify it because people always want to invest in good businesses. We always come back to the same point. Hence the need to adopt a systematic and structured approach to ensure that we are building a good business that is investable, that can raise money, or that can be financed by customers. Nevertheless, market conditions matter. Of course. And it’s easier said than done. What I would say is that investors will always invest in good businesses with fewer risks. And I think entrepreneurs should ask themselves: “Have I reduced the risk of this business? Does this business have few risks, enough for an investor?” Because an entrepreneur’s most precious resource is time and money.
Paul Cheek, a serial entrepreneur.
Founder of several companies and at the genesis of the creation of a handful of projects, Paul Cheek identifies himself as a serial entrepreneur. He argues that entrepreneurs are needed everywhere to advance the world and that entrepreneurship is not only about those who start companies. Trained as a software engineer, he is the executive director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and co-founder of Oceanworks. He authored the book “Disciplined Entrepreneurship: Startup Tactics,” which is a practical guide to turning an idea into a functional startup, with assured financing and a team that leads it to success. The solutions he presents synthesize what he teaches in his classes and can be implemented by any entrepreneur looking to succeed in the corporate world or in creating their own company.
Read the full article (original) in Portuguese here.
Source: Jornal de Negócios