AI Can Build Your Next Business—If You Think Bigger

Businesses are overlooking AI’s ability to create entirely new products and businesses. Beth Viner, who leads BCG’s corporate venturing and business building at BCGX, explains how organizations can move beyond efficiency and generate big revenue gains. Companies can combine their historical strengths with AI’s power to meet customer needs in new and unexpected ways.  

Learn More: 

Beth Viner: https://on.bcg.com/4193Lco 

BCG X: https://on.bcg.com/3WUviLQ  

BCG on AI: https://on.bcg.com/42OlGpK 

Beth’s TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x92AnU6MUr0 

The So What from BCG: https://lnk.to/so-what-general-show10

Cities have been struggling since the pandemic. In some—including Los Angeles and San Francisco—office high-rises have become “zombie buildings,” with vacancy rates of 50% or more. But many people still want to live in cities and be part of a vibrant community. BCG’s Santiago Ferrer explores how new forms of transit, from modular pods to self-driving cars, can help reinvigorate moribund downtowns by making them easier to reach and navigate. As part of this transformation, cities will find innovative uses for zombie buildings, turning them into everything from residential units to community art hubs. 

Learn More: 

Santiago Ferrer: https://on.bcg.com/4iXe2Po 

Accelerating the Shift to Sustainable Transport: https://on.bcg.com/3Y8ScQo 

Cities of the Future: https://on.bcg.com/43Ttw2f 

BCG’s Latest Thinking on Public Sector: https://on.bcg.com/4le9qWn 

Even the most nimble and successful companies are sometimes forced to replace huge swaths of their workforce when business strategy changes. But layoffs come with costs: hiring and firing workers is expensive. Letting workers go can also damage an institution’s reputation and demoralize the employees who remain. BCG’s Kevin Kelley explains how companies can reduce the need for layoffs by creating teams that are flexible enough to pivot as priorities shift. The key is to avoid turning teams into silos that know how to do only one thing and thus become obsolete when priorities change. 

Learn More: 

Kevin Kelley: https://on.bcg.com/4kSmNLN 

Resetting the Organization to Improve Cost and Enhance Effectiveness: https://on.bcg.com/3ReXxla 

BCG’s Latest Thinking on Cost Excellence: https://on.bcg.com/4irJBjB 

BCG’s Latest Thinking on People Strategy: https://on.bcg.com/43Mo2WI 

BCG on Organization Design: https://on.bcg.com/4krU0gW 

India has been experiencing a rapid transformation over the past decade. The government has made massive investments in physical and digital public infrastructure, and its share of affluent consumers has grown considerably. It’s also young – over half of India’s 1.4 billion people are under the age of 30. In this episode, BCG’s Kanika Sanghi imagines how India’s rising consumer class could change the global economy, from setting trends to pioneering new business models. Sanghi's advice is that business leaders across industries should start planning now to capitalize on India’s growth story. 

Learn More: 

Kanika Sanghi: https://on.bcg.com/3D2ZI8i 

BCG on Customer Insights: https://on.bcg.com/4h5FUPw 

The CEO’s Guide to India: https://on.bcg.com/3EZP9U0 

The $2 Trillion Opportunity: How Gen Z is Shaping the New India: https://on.bcg.com/3QH83lg 

It’s no secret the media business, which has long relied on advertising revenue, is in crisis. It’s not a stretch to imagine that few if any of the major TV networks, newspapers and magazines - the old guard bedrocks of U.S. media - will survive into the next decade. BCG’s Neal Zuckerman imagines a world where every business has a Chief Content Officer. From health insurers to snack-food companies, companies are creating their own content to entertain and educate their customers. Zuckerman also explores the future of on-demand streaming and how the news business could survive and even thrive. 

Learn More: 

Neal Zuckerman: https://on.bcg.com/4k6uj5i 

BCG Media and Entertainment Industry: https://on.bcg.com/3QoGKfi 

Why Video Streamers Need to Rebundle: https://on.bcg.com/415I5fJ 

Content Creation Is Key to Marketing Success https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=475zs6pf8nI

How will advances in sustainable materials and modular construction change how homes are designed and built? And how will these innovations address the urgent need for affordable housing? BCG’s Matthias Tauber suggests ways to solve the housing crisis through changes in design, manufacturing, materials, permitting, and financing. Homes of the future will provide more alternatives, often by reimagining shared spaces and resources in flexible ways that allow for custom designs. The one no-regret move? Tauber says: invest in technology.  

Learn More: 

Matthias Tauber: https://on.bcg.com/4fh2mo2 

Building Materials Industry: https://on.bcg.com/3Ultz19 

GenAI on GenAI: https://link.chtbl.com/bcg-genai-on-genai?sid=IT 

CEO Digest: https://link.chtbl.com/ceo-digest-bcg-show?sid=IT 

CEO Moments of Truth: https://on.bcg.com/ITMoT 

Join BCG’s Global Chair Rich Lesser, and GENE, BCG’s GenAI conversational agent, for the high points from the speaking halls and hallways of the 2025 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Rich and GENE spotlight what world and business leaders had to say in conversations about geopolitics, economic growth, the path to AI success for business, and more. To learn more about BCG at Davos, visit https://www.bcg.com/about/partner-ecosystem/world-economic-forum/davos. To hear more of GENE, listen at https://lnk.to/imagine-this-general-show01.

Today

BCG's Matthew Sinclair explores the future working relationship between human and machine. Will a coming generation of AI bots be able to generate and iterate ideas as well as or better than people? Will knowledge workers be replaced by machines? BCG’s Matthew Sinclair imagines a future where technology could replace writers, software engineers, and, yes, consultants – although he’s not convinced that businesses should lose the human touch. There are inherent risks in handing over the most creative elements of your business to bots – including perpetuating what Sinclair calls “the tyranny of the banal.”

Learn More:

Matthew Sinclair: https://on.bcg.com/4btUGgN

AI at Scale: https://on.bcg.com/44Y6pSu

Matthew Sinclair on Medium: Matthew Sinclair – Medium

GenAI on GenAI: https://link.chtbl.com/bcg-genai-on-genai?sid=IT

CEO Digest: https://link.chtbl.com/ceo-digest-bcg-show?sid=IT

What becomes possible when your AI-enabled headset is as light and comfortable as an ordinary pair of glasses? BCG’s Kristi Woolsey imagines a world with an AI third eye, where your glasses can instantly provide information, warnings or advice. This new generation of smart glasses could also help you learn new skills, whether cooking at home or mastering technical aspects of your job. But Woolsey also warns that we’ll need to put limits on the technology– these new glasses might also be able to reveal things about other people that are better left private.  

Learn More: 

Kristi Woolsey: https://on.bcg.com/4cWZxXK 

BCG on Augmented and Virtual Reality: https://on.bcg.com/4d3LFva 

GenAI on GenAI: https://link.chtbl.com/bcg-genai-on-genai?sid=IT 

CEO Digest: https://link.chtbl.com/ceo-digest-bcg-show?sid=IT 

BCG’s Mary Martin imagines a future where restaurants will harness advances in artificial intelligence, data management, and robotics to create a better experience for both customers and staff. This could involve using AI to personalize dining or deploying robots in the kitchen to help the chef with certain repetitive tasks. While these advances will usher in a unique customer experience, restaurants will still need a human touch.   

Learn More: 

Mary Martin: https://on.bcg.com/3Bo1mjM 

Menu for One: GenAI Lets Restaurants Get Personal: https://on.bcg.com/3BbO3mH 

Where’s the Value in AI?: https://on.bcg.com/3OV7lzD 

CEO Moments of Truth: https://on.bcg.com/ITMoT 

GenAI on GenAI: https://link.chtbl.com/bcg-genai-on-genai?sid=IT 

CEO Digest: https://link.chtbl.com/ceo-digest-bcg-show?sid=IT