Strategy Summit 2026: Who’s Going to Succeed with AI?
4/2/202630 min
Artificial intelligence is advancing quickly, but its real impact on productivity, jobs, and competitive advantage is still uncertain. In this four-part special series, we'll share conversations from the recent HBR Strategy Summit to help you get ahead. In this episode, Andrew McAfee, principal research scientist at MIT and cofounder and codirector of the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy at the MIT Sloan School of Management, will explain why we’re in a moment where “nobody knows anything” about how AI will ultimately reshape business—and what leaders should do anyway. Plus, he argues cutting entry-level hiring because of AI could be a major long-term mistake. HBR editor at large Adi Ignatius contributes audience questions.
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First 90 secondsAdi Ignatius· Host0:00
[gentle music] Legal teams face more data and more scrutiny than ever. They need AI built for both. Relativity is the AI platform for legal work, delivering defensible AI that handles the tedious tasks so judgment stays where it belongs, with you. Learn more at relativity.com/ideacast.
Alison Beard· Host0:19
[upbeat music] AI agents are suddenly everywhere you turn, but without identity, you can't really control what they do. Okta helps you assign every agent a trusted identity, so you get the power of AI without the risk. Secure every agent, secure any agent. Okta secures AI. [upbeat music] I'm Alison Beard, and this is the HBR IdeaCast. Harvard Business Review recently hosted the HBR Strategy Summit twenty twenty-six, a day filled with expert advice and guidance from executives and academics. We're sharing the highlights of the event in this special IdeaCast series. Today, our final episode of the series is a master class from Andy McAfee, Principal Research Scientist at MIT and Co-founder and Co-director of the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy