Best of CASE District II Award
 

Institution: University of Waterloo

Title of entry: ChatGPT: What Executives Really Need to Know

About this entry: In early 2023, global hype mounted around the revolutionary release of ChatGPT, the AI-based large language model that disrupted industry, government, and society. To support our audience of executives and professionals who needed to understand the broad-ranging impacts of this emerging technology, WatSPEED quickly developed a free, accessible webinar on the topic in just three weeks.

ChatGPT: What Executives Really Need to Know was designed to highlight the impact that ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies will have on Canadian businesses and industries, preparing business leaders with critical information to keep themselves and their organizations competitive in the rapidly changing landscape.

Offered as a live, virtual one-hour webinar, it featured leading University faculty experts in AI and innovation, who delivered leading-edge information about a timely, relevant topic for our target audience. A lengthy Q&A provided attendees the opportunity to ask their most pressing questions.

We promoted the webinar via paid advertising, social media, and emails, and leveraged our partners to spread the word. As the first webinar that WatSPEED organized, we far surpassed our expectations with 2,200+ registrants from 10+ countries and 1,400+ attendees (a university record). A YouTube video of the recorded webinar has since been viewed nearly 14,000 times. The success of the webinar led to the development of two courses for professionals and executives on this topic. It also helped establish our new unit, and the University as a whole, as a credible, trusted leader of executive education in the tech and business space.