Master of Science in Technology & AI Leadership Curriculum

These courses are the foundation of the MSAIL curriculum, ensuring that you build the strong foundation necessary for your future success. All courses are one semester long unless otherwise noted:

• Foundations of AI / ML 
• AI, Data, & Society 
• Technology, Strategy & Market Dynamics 
• Delivering Technology at Scale (half semester)
• Leading & Communicating with Data (half semester)
• Measuring What Matters
• Capstone Project 

MSAIL students have the option to join their peers on the Carnegie Mellon campus for 3-day, in-person leadership residencies to build connections and develop critical skills. Residency topics vary by semester and may include: 

• Leadership
• Change Management
• Negotiation
• Teamwork

Managing AI within an organization is as much a leadership challenge as a technical one, requiring alignment of strategy, governance, and culture. This concentration prepares students for responsible AI adoption through systems thinking addressing both technical and organizational dimensions of change. Students build a working understanding of AI’s impact on business and society, learn to design ethical governance frameworks, and develop the leadership capabilities necessary to guide organizations through AI-enabled transformation.

Courses in this pathway are all semester-long and include: 

• Leading AI Implementation
• Responsible AI Governance
• Scaling AI Organizations
   

As privacy and security emerge as central leadership concerns, this concentration prepares managers and practitioners to navigate the intersections of threat landscapes, regulatory compliance, and strategic risk management. Students learn to assess cybersecurity and privacy risk across technical and non-technical environments, design forward-looking strategies for Cloud and AI environments, and align security investment with broader organizational priorities. Graduates are equipped to build resilient security programs and make sound decisions under uncertainty.

Courses in this pathway are all semester-long and include: 

• Cybersecurity Risk, Policy, & Governance
• Technology Governance, Policy, and Privacy
• Cybersecurity for Intelligent Systems