In a Canadian first for business education, Ivey Business School has launched Cloudforce’s nebulaONE®, providing faculty, staff, and students with secure, community-wide access to a leading enterprise generative artificial intelligence (AI) platform.
Leaders at Ivey say the rollout represents more than a new technology offering – it reflects a shift in how business education must evolve as AI becomes increasingly embedded in workplaces, decision-making, and leadership. It also reflects the School’s broader ambition to reimagine experiential business learning for the world.
With this launch, Ivey joins an elite group of institutions worldwide, including UCLA Anderson School of Management and London Business School, and will learn alongside them through nebulaONE’s Higher Education Advisory Council.
Ivey Dean Julian Birkinshaw said he sees this moment as an opportunity to lead in how business schools respond to generative AI.
“I see this not as a disruption to manage, but as an opportunity to lead,” he said. “Our aim is to become an AI-enabled organization that models the leadership we seek to develop in others.”
A key benefit of nebulaONE is the flexibility to access multiple advanced AI models – including tools from OpenAI, Anthropic, DeepSeek and others – within a single secure enterprise environment. Designed for enterprise use, the platform offers privacy protection to support responsible adoption across the School.
A catalyst for how Ivey teaches, researches, and operates
Birkinshaw said generative AI is transforming business education as profoundly as it is reshaping organizations and leadership.
“The rise of generative AI has created a powerful impetus to act on our vision, a catalyst for how we teach, research, operate, and how we prepare students for success in an AI-enabled workplace,” he said.
The launch of nebulaONE is only the beginning. In the weeks and months ahead, Ivey will offer training and workshops designed to support practical adoption and a deeper understanding of AI’s strategic implications.
Ivey faculty are already exploring how AI can enhance classroom learning and case-based education, while researchers across disciplines are examining how AI is transforming industries and workplaces.
Birkinshaw said AI should not be viewed simply as a shortcut, but as a tool that can strengthen learning when used thoughtfully.
“Each of us should think of AI as that sparring partner, as an assistant, as a teammate, as a coach that helps us do our job better,” he said.
Making AI accessible and secure
For staff and faculty, the platform is designed to make AI tools easier to access and safer to use.
Delia Campbell, Executive Director of Information Technology at Ivey, said nebulaONE is intended to feel approachable for users who are already familiar with tools such as ChatGPT.
“We’ve tried to do everything to make this as user-friendly and accessible as possible,” she said. “One of the reasons that we selected nebulaONE to be our enterprise platform of choice was the fact that within one environment, you can have access to many models on the market.”
Campbell noted that the secure enterprise setup helps protect privacy while giving community members room to experiment and explore how AI can support different kinds of work.
Building confidence and capability across Ivey
The launch also responds to growing interest and uncertainty around AI use in higher education.
In a recent survey of Ivey faculty and staff, many respondents reported experimenting with AI tools but expressed a lack of confidence, training, and clear guidance.
“We heard that there was a strong interest, but people weren’t terribly confident in their capability,” said Sara Baillie, Director of Human Resources at Ivey. “The barrier was not mindset, it was enablement.”
In the months ahead, Ivey will offer workshops and learning opportunities to help faculty and staff build comfort using AI responsibly and effectively.
“Training doesn’t have to be heavy or technical. It’s going to be more of a drip approach and a lot of experimentation and sharing of ideas,” said Baillie.
Student rollout expands equitable access
Ivey will expand access to nebulaONE to students beginning Feb. 23, providing secure access to generative AI tools for academic and educational purposes.
Birkinshaw said the goal is to help students build fluency while maintaining the critical thinking and judgment central to the School’s case-based learning model.
“The intent is not to replace critical thinking or judgment, but to help students learn how to work thoughtfully alongside emerging tools in ways that align with Ivey’s experiential approach to learning,” he said.
In addition to access to multiple large language models, students will also begin to see a growing set of AI “agents” designed to support common tasks, such as navigating technical questions or understanding School policies.
By offering universal access, Ivey aims to help ensure students can benefit from these tools regardless of personal financial circumstances.
“This is a defining moment for business schools,” said Birkinshaw. “As Canada’s leader in business education, we not only have an opportunity, but an obligation, to lead change and help shape the future.”
