Today, UC Berkeley Haas is unveiling a new strategic narrative campaign that builds on the school’s legacy of questioning the status quo and embraces the critical role of human leadership in the age of AI.
Over the past eight months, more than 500 students, faculty, alumni, employers, and staff shared their experiences and insights to help articulate what makes Haas distinctive.
Watch the video to see how we're moving business forward.💙💛#BerkeleyHaas #UCBerkeley
That’s a wrap on the Spring 2026 semester!
We’re excited to celebrated our grads over the next week. 🎓 And we look forward welcoming the rest of you back—along with many new faces—after your summer adventures!
Go Bears. 💙💛
After 20+ years studying and teaching in the Nordic countries, UC Berkeley Haas Lecturer and Center for Responsible Business Executive Director Robert Strand published a new book, Nordic Capitalism: Lessons for Realizing Sustainable Capitalism.
Rather than viewing capitalism as an end goal, Strand explores how Nordic nations use it as a tool designed to support democracy, shared prosperity and sustainable development. Published by Cambridge University Press, Nordic Capitalism is available to read for free online.
🔗 Check out the story at the link in bio.
#BerkeleyHaas #ResponsibleBusiness #ResearchAtHaas #NordicCapitalism
We’re proud to celebrate Janet L. Yellen, Professor Emerita of Business Administration, on her election to the National Academy of Sciences, one of the highest honors recognizing distinguished and lasting contributions to research and public service.
Throughout her career, Yellen has shaped economic policy at the highest levels, becoming the first person in U.S. history to lead the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Her work advancing understanding of unemployment, monetary policy, and global trade continues to influence economies around the world.
Her election reflects the powerful intersection of scholarship, leadership, and impact that defines the Berkeley Haas community.
Join us in congratulating Secretary Yellen!
#BerkeleyHaas #HaasAlumni #BeyondYourself
Gonzalo Vásquez, MBA 26: “I studied economics back in Lima, in Peru. I wanted to do tech, so it made a lot of sense to come to the Bay for an MBA. I attended a session in Lima with one of the Haas admissions officers and when she presented the Haas Defining Leadership Principles, I said, “OK, this is a place where I could see myself growing and expanding my career.”
During my first year I took the Lean LaunchPad class., Angel (Tramontin) and I founded GoPlai, which is like Strava but for team-based sports. I grew up playing soccer competitively, and GoPlai is a platform that a parent or an amateur player or coach can use to upload footage of your games and get back highlights, stats, and a sports identity within the social platform.
There were two trends that kind of converged that led to our startup idea. One is improved camera capabilities and computer vision and the fact that you can now get data from video footage. That's something that wasn't a reality for amateur athletes back in the day. And then there’s the explosion of social media users and content.
Jerry Engel was a great mentor in Lean LaunchPad. He definitely embodies the entrepreneurial mindset. Before the class, we had a pre-check with him. A group of five of us were asked to pitch a startup idea. He said, ‘OK, what's your value proposition?’ He made us write on the board and describe our product when we didn't even have something fully baked. Then he brought in Sean Foote, a Haas lecturer and VC, and said “Pitch your company to him.” That was mind blowing for me—how fast we were moving. But that's the best way to learn—put yourself out there and grow.
At Haas, especially over the past few months, there has been an explosion in AI capabilities. New companies dominating the industry are receiving an insane amount of investment and launching products every other day or week. My cohort is learning about everything that's going on in communities, clubs, or through workshops, WhatsApp chats, or events. At Berkeley you get a lot more information than what you typically get, even if you were working in the tech industry. The ecosystem is the perfect place to be."
#HaasAI #HumanEdgeofAI
In this Dean’s Speaker Series podcast episode, President & CEO of NIKE, Inc. Elliott Hill reflects on his three-decade journey serving in various leadership roles across Europe and North America, including leading commercial and marketing operations for the Nike and Jordan brands.
Hill shares insights on how Nike integrates sustainability into product creation, staying connected to athletes and consumers, and leading with clarity, integrity, and curiosity in a highly competitive global marketplace.
🎧 Listen to the full conversation on the Dean’s Speaker Series podcast at the link in bio.
#BerkeleyHaas #UCBerkeley #DeansSpeakerSeries #Leadership
Congratulations to our nine PhD graduates in the Class of 2026! 🎓
Earning a PhD takes years of dedication, intellectual curiosity, and perseverance. We are so proud of each and every one of you, and we can’t wait to see where your brilliance takes you!
#BerkeleyHaas #2026HaasPhDCommencement #UCBerkeley #2026Commencement
What’s the most important thing future business students need to learn about AI right now? What’s the AI lesson you want students to walk away from your class with? We asked these questions to some of our UC Berkeley Haas faculty who are researching and teaching at the frontier of AI and business. Today we feature Associate Professor Abhishek Nagaraj, who studies how data and AI can act as a map to drive progress. He teaches AI for Business Leaders and Entrepreneurial Strategy across Haas MBA and executive education courses.
#HumanEdgeofAI #HaasAI #BerkeleyHaas #UCBerkeley #Innovation #Leadership
A big thank you to Nike President & CEO Elliott Hill for joining us at the Dean’s Speaker Series!
From starting his career as an intern to returning as CEO decades later, Elliott shared powerful lessons on leadership, purpose, and staying grounded in what matters most. Dean Jenny Chatman opened the conversation with personal stories of her life as a competitive runner and lifelong athlete—from racing marathons in Nike shoes to building a long-term connection with the brand.
Here are some insights from the conversation:
Put the Athlete at the Center
Great leadership starts with clarity of purpose. At NIKE, Inc., every decision begins with serving athletes and remembering that “if you have a body, you’re an athlete.”
Chase Passion, Not Perfection
Your first job doesn’t have to be perfect. Follow what excites you, gain experience, and let curiosity guide your path.
Lead with Values & Integrity
Whether navigating global strategy or personal priorities, Elliott emphasized defining your own mission statement and making decisions aligned with your values.
We’re grateful to Dean Jenny Chatman and student moderator Joe Wilson, MBA ’26, for helping bring this inspiring conversation to the Haas community.
#BerkeleyHaas #UCBerkeley #DeansSpeakerSeries #Leadership #Nike
From idea to Demo Day in just 13 weeks. 🚀
Haas MBA students are building the next generation of AI startups through the new AI Entrepreneurship course—an immersive course taught by Associate Professor Omri Even-Tov and Haas alum Alex Zekoff, MBA 17, where students aren’t just learning about startups… they’re building them in real time.
Modeled after leading startup accelerators, the course connects students with mentors from companies like OpenAI, Google, Nvidia, and Anthropic while equipping them with the tools, community, and accountability needed to move fast in today’s AI landscape.
“This class gives students the chance to develop the mindset of an entrepreneur in today’s world,” said Even-Tov. “Whether students end up building their own companies or working inside an organization, these skills are becoming essential.”
Out of 27 Demo Day teams, 20 are continuing to build and several have already joined top accelerators including Berkeley SkyDeck.
🔗Read the full story at the link in bio.
#BerkeleyHaas #HaasAI #HaasMBA #Entrepreneurship #HumanEdgeofAI
The office has never been just a place to work—it reflects and shapes an organization’s culture, and evolves with broader cultural trends. Fledgling AI companies are adding their own new twist, says Christopher Good, Chief Creative Officer at One Workplace.
Good, along with Paul Cooper, Principal at TEF Design, joined Jennifer Chatman and Sameer Srivastava on the latest episode of The Culture Kit to discuss how physical space communicates what an organization values—and what it means to design a workplace that truly works for the people in it.
🎧 Listen to the latest episode at the link in bio.
The AI revolution isn’t coming—it’s already here, and Haas is at the epicenter. 📍
We’re doing more than just discussing the future; we’re building it. From hands-on courses where students build with AI to peer-led “activation sessions,” Haasies are learning to integrate AI into every industry and job role. 🚀
The world is moving fast. We aren’t looking back. ⚡
🔹 Colton Hess, MBA/MPH ’26 (pictured in the second photo) is helping classmates unlock what’s possible with AI. Through 30+ one-on-one “activation sessions,” he’s empowering students to launch projects using Claude Code. As Hess puts it: “I share a lot of concern about the potential negative impacts, but I am an optimist and find the tech incredibly democratizing in helping the traditional gates of entrepreneurship to come down.”
🔹 Pepe Alonso, MBA ’27 (pictured kneeling at the front of the class in the third photo) is equipping classmates with deep technical AI fluency through his From Zero to AI Agents workshops, teaching students how to build and evaluate AI systems — preparing MBAs to become “AI intrapreneurs” inside the organizations they’ll lead.
🔹 Ayushman Dey, MBA ’26 (speaking behind the podium in the last photo) helped spark a campuswide movement with Haas’ first vibe coding workshop, where students built apps and prototypes together using emerging AI tools. Reflecting on the energy of that first session, Dey said: “We got a huge response, so many people wanted to learn.” Dey also notes that “there’s a huge demand for this skill set because increasingly for startups in the Bay Area as well as large enterprises, it’s non-negotiable to have these skills."
🔗 Read the full story at the link in bio.
#BerkeleyHaas #HaasAI #Innovation #FutureOfWork #HumanEdgeofAI #ArtificialIntelligence
