The AI Revolution-2: MIT Sloan’s Rama Ramakrishnan on How AI Is Transforming Business Strategy
In Part 2 of our exclusive three-part masterclass, the MIT Sloan professor, entrepreneur and former Salesforce executive examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping business models, competitive advantage and decision-making—and what organizations must do to succeed in the AI era.
BOSTON–Artificial intelligence is no longer an emerging technology on the horizon. It has become a strategic business imperative, influencing how companies innovate, serve customers, optimize operations and compete in an increasingly data-driven economy. As AI capabilities continue to advance, organizations face a critical question: How can they move beyond experimentation to create lasting business value?
In Part 2 of our three-part masterclass, Rama Ramakrishnan, Professor of the Practice in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at the MIT Sloan School of Management, explores AI through the lens of business strategy. Building on the foundational concepts introduced in Part 1, he explains how organizations can harness AI to improve decision-making, create intelligent products and services, enhance customer experiences and drive innovation across the enterprise.
To watch part-2, please click here, or on the image below.
Drawing on decades of experience in both academia and industry, Ramakrishnan discusses how AI is changing the competitive landscape and why business leaders must think beyond adopting new tools. Instead, they must develop strategies that integrate AI into their organization’s culture, operations and long-term vision.
Ramakrishnan brings a unique perspective to these challenges. Before joining MIT Sloan, he spent more than two decades as a technology entrepreneur and executive, founding and helping build software companies that were later acquired by Oracle, Demandware and Salesforce.
As Senior Vice President at Salesforce and Chief Data Scientist for Salesforce Commerce Cloud, he led Salesforce Einstein for Commerce, an artificial intelligence platform that powers personalized shopping experiences for hundreds of millions of consumers each month. The platform evolved from CQuotient, the AI startup he founded, which was acquired by Demandware before becoming part of Salesforce in its $2.8 billion acquisition of Demandware.
His earlier career included leadership roles at Oracle, ProfitLogic and McKinsey & Company, where he focused on applying analytics and data science to solve complex business problems. Today, at MIT Sloan, he teaches courses on predictive and generative AI, intelligent products and hands-on deep learning, helping executives and students understand how AI can be translated into practical business solutions.
Throughout this session, Ramakrishnan examines the opportunities AI presents across industries while addressing the organizational and leadership challenges that accompany technological transformation. He discusses how companies can identify meaningful AI use cases, avoid common implementation pitfalls, and build capabilities that create sustainable competitive advantage.
Rather than viewing AI as simply another technology investment, Ramakrishnan encourages business leaders to see it as a catalyst for organizational change—one that will influence strategy, innovation, productivity and growth for years to come.
Part 2 offers practical insights for executives, entrepreneurs, managers and professionals seeking to understand how AI is redefining business and what it takes to compete successfully in an AI-driven economy.
