The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania

They are the pioneers, trendsetters, and innovators. They were the first business school to develop healthcare, entrepreneurship, and international management programs. They were among the first to integrate analytics, fintech, and cryptocurrency into their core (let alone design electives around them). They were drivers behind the MOOC revolution that brought Ivy-quality business education to the masses.

The first research center? Wharton. The first business radio station? Wharton again – XM Channel 132.  A nonpartisan public policy center reviewed at the highest levels of government and business? That’s the Penn Wharton Business Model – or PWBM for short. First custom executive education program? Another Wharton groundbreaker! And can you believe it has been a quarter century since Wharton established a campus in San Francisco?

Yes, the Wharton School embodies the first-mover mentality. Not only do they get in first, but they make whatever it is the best. You could call Wharton the AI School – All In! That’s been the mentality they’ve had since they were founded in 1881 and started MBA classes 40 years later. Now, Wharton is looking to become a different AI School – Artificial Intelligence.

Where Wharton goes and what Wharton does will inevitably be the template for other schools to follow.

In June, the Wharton School announced its bold new investments in the Artificial Intelligence space. “Business schools have a crucial role to play in understanding and advancing an AI-enabled world,” Dean Erika James explained in a statement. “No school is better positioned to examine the multifaceted dimensions of this evolving phenomenon than Wharton. That’s why we are investing heavily in areas that allow our faculty to navigate the avalanche of interrelated issues AI has broached.”

In a 2024 Q&A with P&Q, Blair Mannix, the executive director of graduate admissions at the Wharton School, claims the AI & Analytics Initiative will have a “huge impact” on both the curriculum and the culture. Mannix notes that all full-time and executive MBA students will receive ChatGPT Enterprise licenses to allow them to explore generative AI. In addition, Wharton will be starting two funds in AI research and education.

“The Wharton AI Research Fund gives our faculty resources to dive into projects that connect AI developments with real-world business models, industries, and economies” Mannix continues. “The Education Innovation Fund supports faculty in updating and reshaping their courses to integrate AI tools and concepts. These initiatives are laying the groundwork for Wharton to stay at the forefront of AI education.”

In fact, being an AI and data science leader is an overriding purpose for Wharton, with Dean James predicting that these areas will “fundamentally transform every sector of business and society.” For Nancy Rothbard, the school’s deputy dean, this means that AI expertise and experience is a fundamental that an MBA must possess before leaving Huntsman Hall.

“Developing a fluency in AI and its impact on business decision-making is no longer an option, it’s a requirement to be competitive in any organization. We are once again answering society’s call to address the needs of tomorrow and we’re excited to provide our students and the business world with the tools and applicable knowledge they need to excel as we collectively confront the most transformative technology of our time.”

One reason why this commitment is so important is the sheer size of Wharton’s footprint. Picture over 100,000 alumni across 153 countries. The school also operates 30 research centers and initiatives – ranging from retail to ESG to behavioral science – that could potentially collaborate with these new AI efforts. What’s more, Wharton ranks as the top business school for the quantity and impact of its research according to annual studies from both The Financial Times and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Wharton faculty roster, which includes over 240 members, reads like a thought leader all-star lineup: Adam Grant, Gad Allon, Peter Fader, Katherine Milkman, and Mori Taheripour.

Even more, the school is known for across-the-board excellence that multiplies Wharton’s influence. In a 2024 U.S. News survey of business school deans and MBA directors, Wharton ranked as the top MBA program for Real Estate and Finance, while finishing 2nd for Marketing and Accounting and 3rd for International Business and Business Analytics. It even cracked the Top 10 in three more disciplines: Management (5th), Production (6th), and Entrepreneurship (8th). In terms of 2024 school rankings, Wharton sat atop their peers in both the U.S. News & World Report and The Financial Times lists. 2024 represented the 12th time that Wharton placed 1st with The Financial Times – more than Harvard Business School and Stanford GSB combined.

And Wharton doesn’t just dominate the full-time MBA space. It continues to reign as the top business in both P&Q’s Undergraduate and Executive MBA rankings. If any school possesses the resources and intellectual horsepower to channel AI, it would be Wharton.

Alongside scale and renown, flexibility is a Wharton hallmark. Claire North, a first-year MBA, notes that she can start taking electives after first semester, provided she completes the core before graduation. This mix of flexibility and scale made Wharton the perfect fit for her.

“Students can take electives across any of Wharton’s schools. I sought a program that, in addition to teaching analytical and leadership skills, enabled me to delve into specialized subjects such as startup entrepreneurship, healthcare economics, and decentralized technologies. At Wharton, I can gain a world-class business education while exploring these interests through electives like Managing the Emerging Enterprise, Health Care Services Delivery, and Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, Digital Assets: Business, Legal, and Regulatory Issues.”

Blair Mannix dives into this advantage further in a 2023 interview with P&Q. “The curriculum offers both a business foundation and a ton of freedom to explore new topics. We offer 21 majors and over 200 electives, a variety of course styles like case studies, lectures, and simulations, and students can learn across two campuses in Philadelphia and San Francisco. The Wharton experience is fundamentally about choice, and we love that our students can tailor their experience to meet their unique personal and professional goals.”

Mannix also points to the school’s personalized service as another Wharton fixture. She lists the MBA Career Management Office as an example. Here, staff advise students across two dozen industry pathways, working in tandem with students to develop custom action plans and recruiting strategies. At the same time, career advisors work closely with club leaders to supply career education and networking to deepen the value of their extracurriculars.

“One of the standout tools we offer is MAP (My Action Plan), an online platform developed by our Career Management team,” Mannix adds. “MAP is a personalized support tool that adapts as students progress, offering tailored advice to achieve specific career outcomes. MAP is even incorporating advanced analytics, so it can deliver curated content based on each student’s profile, assessments, and search stage. These kinds of resources—along with our active alumni network—really give our graduates an edge in the job market and help them feel confident and prepared at every step.”

Maybe so prepared that they can follow in the footsteps of Wharton alumni like Alphabet’s Sundar Pichai, adds first-year Mansi Jain. “Some of the world’s greatest changemakers have studied in the same classrooms as I do today, and now I have the privilege of joining such a strong community of leaders. Walking into Huntsman Hall and seeing the Dhirubhai Ambani auditorium fills my heart with pride and hope that one day I, too, might create a legacy and have my name inscribed on one of these halls.”

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