Last week, IESE celebrated the 2026 edition of its 40under40 Awards at our Barcelona campus, bringing together founders, investors and ecosystem leaders to highlight entrepreneurial achievement across our +60,000 strong alumni community. The event honored the 40 entrepreneurs selected for this year’s cohort, along with recipients of four special awards recognizing female leadership, growth, innovation and social impact. Held every four years, the initiative recognizes founders shaping industries worldwide. Across all editions, 40under40 entrepreneurs have collectively created more than 5,000 jobs and raised over €1 billion in funding. Read the full story and discover this year’s awardees.

IESE will host an online Executive MBA Open Day on May 28 featuring the business case “Glovo: From Startup to Unicorn,” led by IESE's Mathieu Carenzo. Participants will experience IESE’s case method through a discussion of one of Europe’s leading scaleups, while gaining insight into how entrepreneurship is embedded across the school’s learning environment, alumni network and venture ecosystem. The session will also offer a closer look at the Executive MBA experience, with EMBA alumni sharing their perspectives on leadership, innovation and career growth. Interested? Find out more. 

Poets&Quants has published its annual “100 Best & Brightest MBAs: Class of 2026,” recognizing outstanding MBA students from leading business schools worldwide. Federico Alatorre (MBA'26) earned a place on the list for his leadership, entrepreneurial mindset and impact within the IESE community. Before joining IESE, Federico was already pursuing entrepreneurial ventures and later became co-president of the MBA’s Startup and Entrepreneurship Club, helping strengthen entrepreneurship initiatives across campus. In his profile, he reflects on the MBA’s transformative experience, the value of global perspectives, and his passion for innovation and venture building. Well deserved, Fede!

Applications are now open for the 2026/27 AI and Quantum streams of Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) San Sebastian, the objectives-based accelerator for science and technology startups with high-growth potential. Through CDL San Sebastian, IESE Business School and BIC Gipuzkoa support founders building ventures in areas such as artificial intelligence and quantum technologies, providing mentoring and entrepreneurial expertise to accelerate growth. Over nine months, participating startups work closely with experienced entrepreneurs, investors and scientists to advance product development, sharpen go-to-market strategies and prepare for fundraising. Applications for the Quantum stream close on June 21, while AI applications remain open through July 10. Find out more and apply.​​​​​​

The 2026 edition of IESE’s Summer Entrepreneurship Experience (SEE) kicked off on May 19, bringing together 27 MBA students across seven teams for an intensive hands-on venture creation program. Led by IESE's Mathieu Carenzo and Mauricio Prieto, with the support of IESE’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center, the initiative helps aspiring entrepreneurs validate and develop new business models. Over the coming weeks, students will work directly with customers, partners and suppliers while using agile development and business model frameworks to refine their ideas through continuous market feedback. Watch the video to hear first-hand reflections from last summer’s cohort. 

IESE MBA students brought entrepreneurial ideas to life during the final Pitch Day of the Fundamentals of Entrepreneurial Management II course. Guided by Professors Liinus Hietaniemi, Jeroen Neckebrouck and Sandra Sieber, teams moved from trend identification to AI-enabled MVP (Minimum Viable Product) development in just a few weeks. One standout venture, CoffeeVision, developed an AI-driven platform to support Brazilian coffee farmers and won both the “Best Use of AI” and Grand Finale awards. Attended by a strong +400 MBA student audience, the competition recreated the pressure of real-world fundraising. A distinguished jury of operators, investors, and tech leaders brought broad industry experience, challenging teams on clarity, traction, and scalability. Read the full story on the MBA Blog.

Recent research co-authored by IESE's Yuliya Snihur examines how social entrepreneurs mobilize ecosystems through storytelling, symbols and emotional engagement. Drawing on the case of French startup C’est Qui Le Patron?!, the study shows how framing fair-priced milk as a collective act of solidarity helped rally consumers, retailers, media and policymakers around struggling farmers. The authors introduce the concept of “energized solidarity framing,” highlighting how meaning-making and community participation can help social ventures scale their impact. Read the full article on IESE Insight for further takeaways.

In a new IESE Insight article, Professor Sampsa Samila explores why AI adoption alone is not enough to drive business transformation. While generative AI is already improving individual productivity, many companies still struggle to translate those gains into firm-level performance. The article highlights the managerial work required to bridge that gap: redesigning processes, redefining the balance between human and machine tasks, and building organizations that continuously develop judgment, tacit knowledge and learning capabilities. Read the full article for further insights.