(By Prof. Anjali Kaushik, Area Chairperson-Information Management & Chairperson-Centre for Digital Economy, Cryptocurrencies & Cybersecurity, MDI Gurgaon)
Artificial Intelligence is pushing the boundaries of the global business landscape at a relentless pace. Discussing hyper-efficient operations or deeply personalised customer journeys, AI’s promise feels almost limitless. However, in addition to these remarkable gains, we must address thorny ethical, legal, and environmental concerns that the corporate world can no longer afford to ignore. The real challenge now is not whether to adopt AI but how to do so responsibly. And more importantly, management education should evolve with this transformation, ensuring that the leaders of tomorrow aren't just tech-savvy but also grounded in ethical thinking.
The Dual-Edged Sword of AI in Business
Across industries, AI is already a force multiplier, optimising everything from hiring and customer service to logistics and marketing. But it’s not without its darker side. Take Amazon’s AI hiring tool, for instance: it was pulled when it emerged that the algorithm penalised resumes that included the word “women’s”. Such examples highlight how algorithms, fed historical data, can replicate and even amplify long-standing societal biases, whether in recruitment, finance, or healthcare.
Privacy concerns compound these issues. From the silent creep of facial recognition in public spaces to covert data scraping, AI frequently treads a fine line between utility and intrusion. India’s 2020 ban on several Chinese apps, including TikTok, was rooted in geopolitics and in fears around surveillance and digital sovereignty. These episodes tap into wider anxieties about the opaqueness of AI-driven decisions and their potential to undermine civil liberties.
Then there’s the environmental footprint of AI, which is a topic often overlooked in the excitement. Power-hungry data centres and the extraction of rare earth minerals quietly fuel this digital revolution, raising uncomfortable questions about sustainability in the age of the climate crisis. If we’re to innovate for the future, we must ensure that the future is liveable.
Global Legal Mandates Are Tightening
Today's governments are not stagnant. The European Union’s landmark AI Act, ratified in 2024, imposes rigorous standards for “high-risk” AI systems, ranging from credit scoring tools to biometric surveillance. Not just recommending transparency and fairness, but also demanding it, with fines reaching up to 7% of a company’s global turnover.
India is also taking strong steps in this direction. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act of 2023 is a game-changer for how our personal data is treated. It puts our consent front and centre, restricts unnecessary data collection, and brings in tough penalties for violations. These new rules don’t just set legal boundaries, they’re helping to build a more ethical and trustworthy digital economy for all of us.
Why Business Education Must Step In
Today, business education cannot afford to treat ethics as a side note. It must be part of the core mission. Management curricula need to go beyond compliance checklists to develop leaders who can ask difficult, values-driven questions.
Not just “Can we build this?” but “Should we?”
Future executives must be able to audit algorithms, interrogate data sources, understand bias, and apply principles like privacy-by-design. Familiarity with regulatory frameworks, like the EU AI Act or India’s DPDP, should be as foundational as financial regulations or corporate law.
This demands interdisciplinary learning. Courses on responsible AI must blend insights from computer science, law, sociology, and philosophy. Frameworks like the FATT principles (Fairness, Accountability, Transparency, and Trust) or UNESCO’s Ethics of AI recommendations provide robust ethical lenses through which to assess technological impact, especially in sectors like healthcare or public services.
Interactive tools like simulations, real-world case studies, or AI sandboxes allow students to wrestle with dilemmas: When should a bot pass a conversation to a human? How can credit algorithms avoid penalising marginalised groups? These are the questions that tomorrow’s managers must feel confident tackling.
India’s Opportunity for Global Leadership
India is uniquely positioned to lead this transformation. With strong digital initiatives like DigiLocker and CoWIN and a clear national AI strategy, the groundwork is in place. But ambition alone isn’t enough. Ethical standards remain largely advisory, and legislative specifics are still maturing.
Institutions like MDI Gurgaon are rising to the occasion, offering courses like “Responsible AI and Emerging Frameworks”, which focus on transparency, bias detection, and legal compliance. But for meaningful impact, such models must be scaled across the country’s business schools. As Indian firms increasingly operate globally, ethical lapses could erode trust and market access. Simply put, ethical literacy is fast becoming a baseline requirement for global leadership.
Conclusion: Responsibility Before Innovation
AI is no longer a futuristic concept; it’s the present. And in this present, ethical leadership is not optional. Indian business education has a vital role to play in nurturing professionals who don’t just chase innovation but guide it responsibly.
Conjugating ethical AI principles into management programmes can ensure future leaders weigh efficiency against fairness, automation against accountability, and data-driven decisions against human dignity. India’s democratic values and digital prowess make it well-suited to set an international example where technological excellence is firmly rooted in integrity.
If innovation is our engine, then ethics must steer the wheel. Every MBA graduate stepping into a boardroom, launching a startup, or shaping public policy should carry that compass with them. In a world of intelligent machines, it’s moral intelligence that counts most.
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are the author’s own and do not reflect the views of this publication. The publication is not liable for the accuracy or completeness of the content.