LONDON, July 2, 2024 — Economist Education announced a new online course, “Artificial intelligence: understanding and applying AI in business,” designed to help professionals evaluate AI, use it productively and address the risks that accompany workplace adoption. The programme combines journalistic context, expert perspectives and practical business scenarios.

The course responds to a widening gap between rapid adoption of generative tools and the ability of organisations to judge where they are useful. According to Economist Education's course announcement, participants will examine how AI affects operations and decision-making while developing strategies for effective and ethical use.

Business application comes before technical spectacle

The programme is intended for professionals who need working knowledge of AI without becoming model engineers. It addresses the questions that arise when a team moves from occasional experimentation to repeatable use: which task should be supported, what evidence shows improvement, which information may enter a tool and when a human must retain the final decision.

That distinction is important because AI fluency is not simply the ability to produce an answer from a prompt. Useful deployment requires a clear business objective, reliable input, an appropriate review process and a way to recognise failure. The course frames AI as a capability to be evaluated rather than an automatic substitute for expertise.

Learning priorities announced for the programme

  • understand the concepts shaping contemporary artificial intelligence;
  • identify practical applications in professional and organisational work;
  • evaluate opportunities alongside operational, ethical and governance risks;
  • improve productivity and work quality through deliberate use rather than indiscriminate automation;
  • develop a reasoned approach to implementation and oversight.

Journalism and specialist insight provide context

Economist Education said the course incorporates insights from journalists at The Economist and expert contributions including Tom Chatfield and Margaret Mitchell. Their inclusion brings together perspectives on technology, society and responsible development rather than reducing the subject to a catalogue of software features.

Business professionals need that wider view because an apparently local automation decision can affect customers, employees, intellectual property and accountability. Understanding the economic incentives behind AI adoption is therefore as relevant as understanding what a particular system can generate.

A text-free mixed-media learning collage combines an open geometric folio, a translucent neural lattice, an unlabelled brass decision compass, a risk shield and blank workflow tiles
Learning materials lead through an abstract model to decision, control and workflow tools without presenting AI as an autonomous answer.

Responsible adoption is part of professional competence

The announcement places ethical use beside productivity. In practice, responsible adoption includes deciding what data can be processed, testing for unreliable or biased output, documenting material uses and providing a route for human challenge. Different industries and jurisdictions may require additional controls.

The course cannot determine an organisation's legal duties or approve a particular system. Its role is educational: to give participants a framework for asking stronger questions and for recognising when specialist advice, security review or formal governance is required.

From individual skill to organisational practice

Individual experimentation can reveal useful cases, but durable value appears only when a workflow is defined. Managers need to specify the original task, expected quality, review owner and measurable outcome. They also need a fallback when a tool is unavailable or produces an unacceptable response.

Participants can apply the course concepts by selecting a bounded process, documenting its current cost and error rate, and testing AI assistance under supervision. A successful pilot should demonstrate improved work while preserving confidentiality, accountability and the professional judgment appropriate to the decision.

What the launch does and does not promise

Economist Education describes the programme as a way to build understanding and practical confidence. Completion does not guarantee higher productivity, career progression or safe deployment. Outcomes depend on the participant, the organisation, the selected technology and the controls applied after learning.

Course availability, curriculum details and enrolment terms should be confirmed directly with the provider. AI technology and related rules continue to change, so professional learning must be complemented by current organisational policy and relevant legal or technical advice.

About Economist Education

Economist Education provides online learning built around subjects relevant to business and public life. Its applied AI course draws on the perspectives of Economist journalists and external specialists to help professionals understand a fast-changing field and make better-informed workplace decisions.

Course information
Economist Education
URL: https://education.economist.com/blog/course-announcement/economist-educations-new-course-on-ai