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AI Experts “dig into the weeds” of AI

Walter Capital Management and The Walter Strategic Forum, organized jointly by Executive Education HEC Montréal and the Centre for Productivity and Prosperity Walter J. Somers Foundation HEC Montréal on October 2, brought together group of business leaders and AI experts to reflect on how businesses and investors should be tackling the challenges of AI.

The Walter Strategic Forum, organized jointly by Executive Education HEC Montréal and the Centre for Productivity and Prosperity Walter J. Somers Foundation HEC Montréal on October 2, brought together group of business leaders and AI experts to reflect on how businesses and investors should be tackling the challenges of AI. “We are here to dig into the weeds of where people are spending money on AI,” announced moderator Craig Betts, Founder and Director of streaming technology company Solace.

Ajay Agrawal, Economist and Professor specializing in the Economics of Artificial Intelligence, Founder of the Creative Destruction Lab, Co-Author of Prediction Machines and Power and Prediction summed it up in his keynote speech: “This is not like the arrival of Internet or the arrival of mobile technology. As leaders of organizations or businesses, we are working in an environment where nobody knows what’s going on. There’s no playbook for leadership.”

The experts agreed there was a strong sense of urgency among businesses and organizations about AI. “Nobody is backing off from using it, as you have seen in Internet or other technologies. People are rushing into this space like crazy,” said Robert G. Ashe, Director, MSCI and Former Lead Director, Shopify. “They all feel the tsunami is coming,” added Joseph F. Squeri, Investor, CTO, and Fintech Founder. “Everyone knows they have to do something, but they don’t know what to do.”

Here are all the experts and speakers we had the privilege of hearing from during the event:

  • Pierre Somers, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Walter Group
  • Ajay Agrawal, Economist and Professor specializing in the Economics of Artificial Intelligence, Founder of the Creative Destruction Lab, Co-Author of Prediction Machines and Power and Prediction
  • Etienne Lacroix, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Vention
  • Hien Le, Vice President, Healthcare Growth, Cercle
  • Isabelle Turcotte, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, ALL IN, Chief Marketing Officer and Vice-President, Ecosystem, Scale AI
  • Robert G. Ashe, Director, MSCI and Former Lead Director, Shopify
  • Steve Sarracino, Founder and Partner, Activant
  • Joseph F. Squeri, Investor, CTO, and Fintech Founder
  • Craig Betts, Founder and Director, Solace
  • Maxime Fortin, Founding Partner at Squarepoint Capital
  • Isabelle Somers, Chair of the Board, Walter Capital Management & Founder, Walter Ventures

Read more about the session here.

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