IE Strategy Workshop
IEStrat 2026
Annual theme: Strategy in the Age of AI
Madrid, May 20-22, 2026
Call for Papers
Strategy in the Age of AI
Rapid technological and organizational changes continue to reshape the field of strategy, influencing how firms develop capabilities, compete in evolving market environments and create value. The Department of Strategy at IE University convenes the IE Strategy Workshop (IEStrat) as an annual forum for scholarly exchange on these themes, each year centered on a topic of strategic relevance.
In this inaugural edition of 2026, organized by the Department of Strategy, the workshop’s topic is Strategy in the Age of AI. The Workshop focuses on how Artificial Intelligence—whether enabled by machine learning or generative AI—is transforming strategic decision-making, organizational design, business models, and industry dynamics.
The program will open on May 20 with a doctoral workshop dedicated to PhD candidates, who are invited to briefly present their ongoing research related to the workshop theme.
On May 21 and 22, the workshop will feature a curated selection of papers at the intersection of strategy and AI, each assigned a discussant, together with one keynote speech per day and multiple opportunities for networking. The Workshop will cover two nights of accommodation for presenters and discussants, conference catering, a gala dinner, and a visit to the Reina Sofía Museum. No registration fees apply.
Program
Wednesday, 20 May – PhD & Early Career
Session format: 15-min presentation · 5-min Q&A · 20-min discussant remarks (covering both papers)
13:00 Registration
13:30 Lunch Buffet
14:30 Welcome Remarks
Session 1
14:35–14:55 Beyond Data Accumulation: Data Traps and Collaborative Meta-Knowledge in Prediction-Intensive Competition
Francesco Castellaneta (SKEMA), Filippo Dal Lago (SKEMA), Davide La Torre (SKEMA), Samuele Murtinu (Utrecht University)
14:55–15:15 Computer-Aided Strategic Search (CASS)
Sam Quinto (UCL)
Session Discussant: Neus Palomeras Vilches (UC3M)
15:35 Coffee Break
Session 2
15:50–16:10 Strategizing Platform Orchestration: Mitigating the Cold Start of Location-Based Gig Platforms Using Generative Agent-Based Modeling
Veljko Uskoković (University of Belgrade)
16:10–16:30 AI Agents and the Evaluation of M&As
Emil Mirzayev (UCL), Marco Testoni (University of Miami), Bart S. Vanneste (UCL)
Session Discussant: Joe Ploog (IE University)
16:50 Coffee Break
Special Talk
17:00–17:30 The Role of Artificial Intelligence at IE University (Moderated by Martina Pasquini, Director of Learning Innovation)
Francisco Luis Machín Aragonés, Chief Data Officer & Carlos Garriga Gamarra, Chief Information Officer, IE
18:30 Visit to Reina Sofía Museum
Pick-up from IE Tower at 17:45
Thursday, 21 May – Day 1
Session format: 25-min presentation · 10-min Q&A · 10-min discussant remarks
08:45 Morning Coffee
09:15 Institutional Welcome (Juan Santalò, Vice-Rector of Faculty & Research; Marco Giarratana, Vice–Rector of Scientific Knowledge and Impact)
Keynote Address
09:30–10:30 Keynote Speaker – Cameron Buckner (University of Florida)
10:30 Coffee Break
Session 1
10:45–11:30 ChatBot Adoption and Startup Employment: Evidence from High-Tech Firms
Stephen Michael Impink (HEC Paris), Manav Raj (Wharton)
Discussant: Annamaria Conti (IE University)
11:30–12:15 Seeing Too Much? How AI Amplifies Deceptive Impression Management
Luis Diestre (IE University)
Discussant: Mircea Epure (Universitat Pompeu Fabra)
12:15 Lunch Buffet
Session 2
13:30–14:15 Avoiding Disasters: AI Integration as a Strategic Decision
Akhil Bhardwaj (University of Bath), Jackson Nickerson (St. Louis University), Joseph Mahoney (University of Illinois)
Discussant: Juan Maicas (CUNEF)
14:15–15:00 Peer Review in the Age of Generative AI
Caterina Moschieri (IE University), Charlotte Cloutier (HEC Montréal)
Discussant: Tommaso Ramus (ESSEC)
15:00 Coffee Break
Session 3
15:15–16:00 The Strategic Foresight of LLMs: Evidence from a Fully Prospective Venture Tournament
Felipe Csaszar (University of Michigan), Aticus Peterson (NYU), Daniel Wilde (Indiana University)
Discussant: Charles Ayoubi (ESSEC)
16:00–16:45 Tradeoffs to Using Multiple Information Technology Providers for High-Tech Startups
Stephen Michael Impink (HEC Paris), Milan Miric (USC Marshall)
Discussant: Francesco Castellaneta (SKEMA)
19:30 Cocktail & Conference Dinner
Friday, 22 May – Day 2
Session format: 25-min presentation · 10-min Q&A · 10-min discussant remarks
08:45 Morning Coffee
Keynote Address
09:15–10:15 Keynote Speaker – Raj Choudhury (LSE)
10:15 Coffee Break
Session 4
10:30–11:15 Generative AI and Coordination at Work
Amirhossein Zohrehvand (Leiden University), Anil Doshi (UCL), Piyush Gulati (UCL)
Discussant: Marco Minervini (IE University)
11:15–12:00 Artificial Intelligence and the Direction of Firm Innovation
Giacomo Marchesini (Copenhagen Business School), Markus Simeth (Copenhagen Business School)
Discussant: Raffaele Conti (ESSEC)
12:00–12:45 Responding to Advances in AI: The Impact of AlphaFold on the Organisation of Academic Labs
Gabriel Cavalli (Copenhagen Business School)
Discussant: Nicola Melluso (Luiss)
12:45 Closing Remarks (Teresa Martin Retortillo, Chief Financial Officer of IE)
13:00 Closing Lunch Buffet
Workshop organizers
Institutional Organizer:
Department of Strategy, IE Business School
Submission details
Interested scholars and PhD candidates are invited to submit a full paper or an extended abstract including key results by March 1st, 2026. Preference will be given to full papers. Accepted presenters will be informed no later than March 15th.
If you are interested in attending the conference as an audience member, please send an email to danilo.messinese@ie.edu
Workshop location
28046, Madrid (Spain)