AI could pose ‘whole problem’ for management education, CEA Nageswaran warns

Artificial intelligence could pose a fundamental challenge to management education over the next two to three decades by automating the entry-level work through which young professionals traditionally develop experience and judgement, Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran said on Thursday.

Addressing the 16th Indian Management Conclave (IMC 2026) in Noida, Nageswaran said business schools would need to rethink their approach to AI rather than simply adding technology-focused courses to existing curricula.

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"Adding one AI elective will not be enough," he said, stressing the need for management institutions to focus on teaching judgement.

"The manager's core tool is a clear and patient mind. That tool is under attack before the students even reach the campuses. So these are India's real challenges over the next 20 to 30 years," Nageswaran said.

He said AI was increasingly capable of performing routine and codified tasks, raising concerns about what happens to the early-career roles that have traditionally served as training grounds for young professionals.

"The trouble is AI now precisely does this junior work. The bottom rungs of the ladder are being sawn off. The routine tasks that once taught the young their trade are the first to be automated. Think about what this means. For a century, we learn judgement on the job, slowly through apprenticeship...and if AI removes the apprenticeship, where will the next generation of judgement be?"

"This is not a small problem for management education, it could be the whole problem," he added.

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‘Teach judgement, not just technique’

Nageswaran said the growing ability of AI to handle analytical work would make human judgement increasingly important in management.

"The parts of management that AI cannot do are exactly the parts that were always the hardest to teach in a classroom," he said.

He called on management institutions to shift their emphasis from technical skills alone towards the ability to frame problems, assess information and make decisions.

"First, teach judgement, not just technique," Nageswaran said.

"If AI now does the analysis, the scarce skill is knowing which question to ask and whether to trust the answer that comes back. This is judgement. It is taught through cases."

Social media and attention

The CEA also identified social media as another challenge facing young people in India, particularly because of its potential impact on attention and health.

"That is one more force and this one is closer to home in India. Social media is doing something to our young people. It is fragmenting their attention. It is straining their mental and physical health. The ability to sit with the hard problem to read something long and difficult to think a man," he said.