MIT Entrepreneurs Leverage AI: A New Era of Innovation and Efficiency
The landscape of entrepreneurship is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by the rapid advancements and increasing integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI). At the heart of this evolution is the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, an institution dedicated to nurturing the next generation of innovators. This year's delta v summer accelerator program provided a clear, up-close perspective on how MIT entrepreneurs are harnessing AI to redefine the process of building startups.
AI as a Tool in the Entrepreneurial Toolkit
While many industry observers predict a seismic and complete overhaul of how startups are conceived and developed, leaders at the Trust Center offer a more nuanced view. Macauley Kenney, an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Trust Center, emphasizes that the fundamental principles of entrepreneurship remain unchanged. "There’s been a shift in how entrepreneurs accomplish tasks, and that trickles down into how you build a company," Kenney states, "but we’re thinking of AI as another new tool in the toolkit." This perspective suggests that while the world may be accelerating at an unprecedented pace due to AI, the core tenets of building a successful business must remain well-understood and firmly in place.
This balanced approach was clearly demonstrated during the summer's delta v startup accelerator. Students regularly leveraged AI tools to gain efficiencies, yet they consistently returned to the indispensable practice of directly engaging with their customers to validate critical business decisions. This blend of cutting-edge technology and time-tested methodologies is a hallmark of the MIT entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Accelerating Processes, Not Replacing Fundamentals
The delta v cohort utilized AI tools across a spectrum of entrepreneurial activities. These included accelerating coding efforts, drafting initial versions of presentations, rapidly acquiring knowledge about new industries, and brainstorming novel ideas. The Trust Center actively encourages students to explore and utilize AI tools as they see fit, fostering an environment of experimentation while simultaneously instilling a mindful awareness of the technology's limitations. The Trust Center's own generative AI application, "Jetpack," serves as a potent metaphor for this philosophy. Named for the significant acceleration it provides, Jetpack, like a literal jetpack, requires a user to actively guide its direction and application. This ensures that the technology enhances, rather than dictates, the entrepreneurial journey.
Ben Soltoff, another Entrepreneur in Residence, underscores the transformative impact of AI, stating, "It’s undeniable we’re in the midst of an AI revolution right now. AI is reshaping a lot of things we do, and it’s also shaping how we do entrepreneurship and how students build companies." He elaborates that the Trust Center has long recognized this trend and has proactively integrated AI into its teaching of entrepreneurship at all levels, from the nascent stages of idea formation through to the complexities of commercialization and scaling.
Navigating AI's Strengths and Weaknesses
The strategic integration of AI has been a central theme in the Trust Center's planning sessions for several years. The organizers of the delta v program continuously consider how students can derive maximum benefit from AI technologies within their curriculum. The outputs from tools like Jetpack are intentionally framed as initial drafts, designed to stimulate brainstorming and guide students toward their next strategic steps.
"You need to verify everything when you are using AI to build a business," cautions Kenney, who also holds a lecturer position at MIT Sloan and MIT D-Lab. "I have yet to meet anyone who will base their business on the output of something like ChatGPT without verifying everything first. Sometimes, the verification can take longer than if you had done the research yourself from the beginning." This highlights a critical aspect of AI adoption: the indispensable need for human oversight and validation.
One compelling example from the current cohort is Mendhai Health, a startup that employs AI and telehealth to deliver personalized physical therapy for women experiencing pelvic floor dysfunction, particularly in the pre and post-childbirth phases. Aanchal Arora, an MBA student and co-founder of Mendhai Health, observes, "AI has definitely made the entrepreneurial process more efficient and faster. Still, overreliance on AI, at least at this point, can hamper your understanding of customers. You need to be careful with every decision you make."
Kenney further elaborates on the potential pitfalls of relying on certain AI tools, particularly large language models. "Some AI tools can increase your speed by doing things like automatically sorting your email or helping you vibe code apps, but many AI tools are built off averages, and those can be less effective when you’re trying to connect with a very specific demographic," he explains. "It’s not helpful to have AI tell you about an average person; you need to personally have strong validation that your specific customer exists. If you try to build a tool for an average person, you may build a tool for no one at all." This underscores the importance of deep market segmentation and targeted customer understanding, areas where AI's generalized outputs may fall short.
AI-Native Businesses and the Enduring Human Element
Despite the potential for AI to overwhelm with the sheer volume of available tools, MIT students, with their history of technological innovation, are adept at leveraging these resources. The 2025 delta v cohort showcased teams that integrated AI at the very core of their solutions and across every facet of their entrepreneurial endeavors.
Murtaza Jameel, an MIT Sloan MBA candidate and co-founder of Cognify, describes his company as an "AI-native business." Cognify utilizes AI to simulate user interactions with websites and applications, aiming to enhance digital experiences through predictive modeling. "We’re building a design intelligence tool that replaces product testing with instant, predictive simulations of user behavior," Jameel explains. "We’re trying to integrate AI into all of our processes: ideation, go to market, programming. All of our building has been done with AI coding tools. I have a custom bot that I’ve fed tons of information about our company to, and it’s a thought partner I’m speaking to every single day." This demonstrates a deep, systemic integration of AI into a company's operational fabric.
The Unchanging Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship
One of the most consistent messages from the Trust Center is the enduring necessity for students to move beyond the confines of the lab or classroom and engage directly with potential customers. "There are ways that AI can unlock new capabilities and make things move faster, but we haven’t turned our curriculum on its head because of AI," asserts Soltoff. "In delta v, we stress first and foremost: What are you building and who are you building it for? AI alone can’t tell you who your customer is, what they want, and how you can better serve their needs. You need to go out into the world to make that happen."
Indeed, many of the significant challenges encountered by the delta v teams this past summer bore a striking resemblance to the perennial hurdles faced by entrepreneurs throughout history. "We were prepared at the Trust Center to see a big change and to adapt to that, but the companies are still building and encountering the same challenges of customer identification, beachhead market identification, team dynamics," Kenney notes. "Those are still the big meaty challenges they’ve always been working on."
Amidst the pervasive hype surrounding AI agents and the future of work, many founders participating in the delta v program highlighted the profound value of the human element. Jameel articulates this sentiment: "I came to MIT with one goal: to start a technology company. The delta v program was on my radar when I was applying to MIT. The program gives you incredible access to resources — networks, mentorship, advisors. Some of the top folks in our industry are advising us now on how to build our company. It’s really unique. These are folks who have done what you’re doing 10 or 20 years ago, all just rooting for you. That’s why I came to MIT." This emphasizes that while AI can accelerate processes, the invaluable guidance, support, and network provided by experienced mentors remain irreplaceable pillars of entrepreneurial success.
AI Summary
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is at the forefront of a new wave of entrepreneurship where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming an indispensable tool. The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, a key incubator for student startups, has observed a significant shift in how entrepreneurs approach business creation due to AI. While the broader tech community anticipates a complete overhaul of startup methodologies, leaders at the Trust Center advocate for a more balanced perspective. They view AI not as a replacement for core entrepreneurial tenets but as a powerful augmentation to the existing toolkit. This philosophy was prominently showcased during the recent delta v summer accelerator program. Students participating in the program consistently utilized AI tools to expedite various aspects of their ventures, including accelerating coding processes, drafting compelling presentations, gaining rapid insights into new industries, and brainstorming innovative ideas. The Trust Center actively encourages this exploration of AI, while simultaneously instilling a critical awareness of the technology’s inherent limitations. The Trust Center’s own generative AI application, dubbed "Jetpack," serves as a prime example of this integrated approach. Inspired by the concept of enhanced acceleration, Jetpack is designed to provide a significant boost to the entrepreneurial process, much like a jetpack propels a user forward. However, the analogy extends to the user’s crucial role in guiding the direction and application of these AI-driven insights. Even with the current constraints of AI technology, the Trust Center’s leadership recognizes its immense potential as a valuable asset for individuals at any stage of business development. Their strategy for incorporating AI is poised to evolve dynamically alongside the technology itself. Entrepreneurs in Residence, such as Macauley Kenney and Ben Soltoff, highlight that while AI is undeniably revolutionizing many sectors, its impact on entrepreneurship is particularly profound. They acknowledge that AI is reshaping not only the tasks involved in building a company but also the very methodologies students employ. The Trust Center has proactively embraced AI, integrating it across all levels of its entrepreneurship education, from the initial stages of idea conception and exploration to the critical phases of testing, commercialization, and scaling. The Trust Center