Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer reserved for tech giants and computer scientists; it’s an innovation catalyst across industries. According to a report by management consulting firm McKinsey, 88 percent of organizations have adopted AI for one or more business functions, up from 78 percent the year prior.
Whether you want to integrate this technology into your current role or lead your organization through a digital transformation, choosing an AI course that aligns with your career goals is crucial.
Top AI Courses to Consider
As AI reshapes how organizations operate, building the right skills at the right career stage is essential. Harvard Business School Online offers two AI-focused certificate courses designed to meet you where you are, whether you want foundational knowledge or are preparing to lead an AI-driven transformation.
1. AI Essentials for Business
AI Essentials for Business is best-suited for professionals, functional specialists, and leaders who want to build a foundational understanding of AI concepts and their business impact. You’ll explore practical use cases that demonstrate how AI drives efficiency and innovation while evaluating where it can add value within your role, function, or industry.
2. AI for Leaders
If you’re well-versed in AI fundamentals and want to lead adoption across your startup or established business, AI for Leaders offers a more advanced strategic perspective. You’ll learn how to assess organizational readiness across talent, data, governance, and technology while identifying high-impact opportunities to integrate AI at scale.
Evaluating your experience and career goals can help you determine the best online AI training programs for your needs. HBS Online also offers a Digital Transformation and AI Learning Track, which allows you to complete three courses in the subject area to earn an advanced Certificate of Specialization.
4 Things to Look for in an AI Course That Could Benefit Your Career
1. Content Quality, Applicability, and Relevance
When selecting an AI course, ensure the content covers foundational AI concepts and aligns with your career goals. Look for programs that offer real-world, case-based examples relevant to your industry.
For instance, if your goal is to leverage AI in healthcare, a program with industry-specific examples can provide practical insights directly applicable to your work. In AI Essentials for Business, you’re introduced to VideaHealth, a dentistry startup using AI to detect dental conditions on X-rays.
In the course, VideaHealth co-founder and CEO Florian Hillen discusses the benefits of using AI for patient diagnostics.
“AI, especially in this diagnostic step—but also later in the treatment planning step—can introduce a more objective, data-driven, and consistent approach toward introducing transparency and trust in this marketplace,” Hillen says in AI Essentials for Business.
Similarly, AI for Leaders examines how organizations like Moderna and Pernod Ricard have overcome adoption barriers and scaled AI to create meaningful business value, with company leaders sharing practical lessons from their experiences.
High-quality, real-world content delivered through an interactive online platform can make learning AI more relevant to your career goals.
2. Industry Expertise
The instructors’ expertise is crucial to your learning experience. Courses taught by and featuring industry leaders who deeply understand AI’s role in business can provide invaluable insights far beyond textbook knowledge.
When looking up courses, research the faculty members’ backgrounds. Instructors with firsthand experience and deep industry knowledge can bridge theory with practice and ensure the course content addresses common challenges and emerging opportunities in the field, making the lessons relevant to your role and today’s ever-evolving business landscape.
This connection between industry expertise and practical application is exemplified by the faculty behind HBS Online’s AI Essentials for Business course: HBS professors Karim Lakhani and Marco Iansiti.
“Marco and I recently finished this book called Competing in the Age of AI,” Lakhani shares in the course. “And we’re really pleased to welcome you to our course, which takes the insights of the book and massively expands it by including a ton of voices of leaders from around the world thinking about how AI is changing the nature of business, both business models and operating models.”
Lakhani also teaches the online course AI for Leaders alongside HBS Professor Iavor Bojinov, who brings expertise in the operationalization of AI. By choosing a course led by experts like those at HBS, you can be confident you’re learning from the best in the field.
3. AI Ethics Coursework
In the rush to implement AI technologies, many overlook the need to better understand their ethical considerations. And since this isn’t industry-specific, nearly any business professional can benefit from this relevant coursework.
“It’s becoming very fundamental to a whole new generation of leaders across both small and large firms,” Iansiti says in AI Essentials for Business. “The extent to which, as these firms drive this immense scale, scope, and learning, there are all kinds of really important ethical considerations that need to be part of the management, the leadership philosophy from the get-go.”
As a result, the best AI courses should include a strong focus on ethics, equipping learners with the knowledge to effectively navigate these challenges.
One particularly relevant concept with AI in business is algorithmic bias, the systematic discrimination that can occur when AI decision-making is influenced by prejudiced data. According to AI Essentials for Business, that bias results in unfair outcomes like:
- Discriminatory hiring
- Unequal access to resources
- Workplace bias
The best artificial intelligence courses will teach you strategies for responsible, ethical AI use, offering tips on recognizing and addressing bias, the power of diverse data sets, and enhancing privacy and cybersecurity. This approach ensures fairness, transparency, and safety in your organization’s AI applications and promotes ethical decision-making.
4. Generative AI Insights
As AI capabilities expand, understanding generative AI—a subset of artificial intelligence that creates new content, such as text, images, and simulations—can give you a strategic advantage.
Unlike traditional AI, which often focuses on data analysis and prediction, generative AI provides the tools to innovate, design, and problem-solve in ways previously unimaginable. Business leaders must understand how it can be applied to their industry-specific challenges and opportunities.
For example, in marketing and product development, generative AI can optimize several aspects of a product launch by:
- Creating personalized content: Tailoring marketing materials to specific audience segments using customer data
- Designing new products: Analyzing trends and preferences to inform innovative product features and offerings
- Simulating customer interactions: Modeling customer responses to refine engagement strategies before launch
By gaining an understanding of these cutting-edge technologies through top generative AI courses, you can help your organization innovate more effectively and compete in an increasingly AI-driven marketplace.
Do AI Courses Require a Background in Computer Science?
There’s a common misconception that AI is a highly technical tool. The reality is that any professional can leverage it to enhance efficiency and drive business innovation.
“I have a strong belief that the future of business is going to be AI-powered,” Lakhani says. “There’s not one organization, one role that will not be touched by AI tools.”
AI courses have become increasingly accessible, even for those without a computer science background. HBS Online’s AI Essentials for Business course introduces foundational concepts to ensure learners from diverse backgrounds understand different applications of AI, such as machine learning and predictive modeling, without being overwhelmed by technical jargon.
This accessibility extends to more advanced programs like AI for Leaders, which focuses on strategy. You’ll explore how companies navigate real-world challenges, assess AI opportunities, and lead transformation efforts—skills grounded in leadership, judgment, and business insight, not programming expertise.
This inclusive approach ensures that professionals from all industries can gain the skills to harness AI’s potential. Your success depends more on your problem-solving skills, creativity, and dedication to learning than on prior technical knowledge.
As you consider which AI course best aligns with your career goals, it’s important to evaluate several factors that could influence your learning experience and professional growth.
How to Advance Your Career with an AI Certificate
As AI continues to reshape industries, choosing the best AI certification course can play a key role in advancing your career. The most effective program doesn’t just teach you the basics; it equips you with the practical skills and insights to apply AI in ways that drive real business value.
HBS Online’s AI Essentials for Business and AI for Leaders courses are designed to help professionals lead in the age of AI. Through practical frameworks and real-world applications, you’ll learn how to shape your organization’s digital transformation strategy, deliver business value, lead AI initiatives, and prepare your business for AI’s long-term impact.
Taught by world-renowned faculty and industry experts, these courses offer a comprehensive, accessible, and actionable approach to AI, making them a meaningful next step for professionals looking to strengthen their leadership capabilities and career trajectory.
Are you interested in building your AI capabilities? Explore AI Essentials for Business and AI for Leaders, or dive deeper with the Digital Transformation and AI Learning Track, which allows you to complete three courses in the subject area to earn an advanced Certificate of Specialization. Download our free flowchart to compare course options and find the right path that aligns with your goals.
This post was updated on January 8, 2026. It was originally published on August 21, 2024.
