How to Approach Artificial Intelligence in Business Education? The best way is to face it head-on, says Andreas Antonopoulos, rector of the University of New York in Prague.
A man with extensive experience in the technology, startup, and academic scenes, he now wants to teach students how to keep pace in the era of the AI revolution—and prepare them for a new business age, even in a virtual environment full of AI agents.
“AI itself doesn’t teach anyone anything; it is merely a tool to advance education,”
acknowledges Andreas Antonopoulos, rector of the University of New York in Prague (UNYP). But this advancement can be fundamental. It must be.
At UNYP, we integrate AI into our curriculum, enabling students to acquire the skills necessary to analyze data, predict trends, and make informed decisions in the digital economy. Our
approach reflects the dynamic and high-risk nature of the startup world,” Antonopoulos explains the philosophy of the international institution, which has been offering higher education in
Prague for almost thirty years.
However, even UNYP first had to carve its path toward AI. As AI technology rapidly evolved, many schools feared it would undermine the principles upon which they were built. Would students start submitting essays generated by ChatGPT? Should AI be banned from education altogether?
Different institutions took different approaches. Some opted for strict bans, but UNYP decided to support its students in utilizing AI. After extensive discussions, the faculty established rules to ensure that AI-powered tools serve as a benefit to education rather than a threat.
AI is not going anywhere—it will become an integral part of our lives. Just like the internet in the 1990s, it is transforming business and human behavior. The only way forward is to learn how to use it. At our university, AI is not just influencing business disciplines but almost every field,” says Antonopoulos.
UNYP has integrated AI into both existing and new courses, including psychology, communication, and international relations. “By doing so, we equip our graduates with essential skills,” the rector believes.
There is no time to waste—many industries, including business sectors, are already actively working with AI. “Companies use it for predictive analytics, personalized customer experiences, and content creation,” Antonopoulos points out. Schools should embrace AI as a partner rather than viewing it as a threat. It can ease administrative tasks and enhance the learning process.”
The future of education: beyond rote memorization
Artificial intelligence could serve as a catalyst that finally shifts education away from rote memorization and toward a model that encourages critical thinking. After all, even ChatGPT and other AI tools won’t provide perfect answers unless given well-structured and precise prompts.
Education must move away from memorization and instead teach students how to ask the right questions and gather information efficiently. AI will help shape curricula, assignments, teamwork, and exams, guiding students not just to acquire knowledge but, more importantly, to apply it,” Antonopoulos predicts.
He studied at prestigious universities in the UK, the US, and his home country, Greece. He later worked in various industries, particularly telecommunications (Lucent Technologies, Nortel
Networks) and fintech (Viva Credit). However, he has also been deeply involved in academia, having worked at University College London and the Central European University. He has served as the rector of UNYP since 2008.
Antonopoulos believes that AI will make it easier to personalize education for each student. He envisions AI broadening students’ perspectives through immersive simulations, engaging in activities within virtual environments, and interacting with computer agents and digital challenges.
This will allow them to train their decision-making skills and response strategies in various scenarios that would be impossible to replicate in a traditional classroom setting.
Powerful Tools (Not Just) for Business
There is no doubt that these are powerful skills for business. After all, not long after the boom of generative artificial intelligence, social media users were competing to showcase how they had used AI to conceive and launch their brand-new startups.
Artificial intelligence plays a key role in business development, online sales, and automated client acquisition,” confirms Andreas Antonopoulos. “It is shifting from automation to augmentation, meaning that it does not replace human decision-making but enhances it,” he adds.
