Organizer 

The “AI and Entrepreneurship” track, organized by Maksim Belitski (University of Reading, UK), seeks to generate cutting-edge insights at the intersection of entrepreneurship, finance, and artificial intelligence. It aims to explore how AI technologies shape entrepreneurial fundraising, emerging forms of digital finance, market entry strategies, and entrepreneurial practice. Contributions may examine the positive implications of AI—such as reduced uncertainty, improved information symmetry, enhanced collaboration and innovation, knowledge spillovers, absorptive capacity, and the ability to anticipate financial trends—as well as its potential to advance the scope and rigor of scholarly research in entrepreneurial finance.

Call for Papers

The workshop invites submissions of full papers or extended abstracts of theoretical on following research questions:

• How do different levels and types of generative AI adoption (e.g., low-tech, mid-tech, high-tech solutions) influence entrepreneurial equity fundraising outcomes?
• To what extent does the scope and intensity of generative AI and machine learning tool use shape investor perceptions and financing success?
• How do organizational learning capabilities and prior market experience moderate the relationship between AI adoption and entrepreneurial outcomes such as fundraising performance, operational efficiency, and cost structures?
• Are there notable industry- or region-specific patterns in how entrepreneurs leverage generative AI for investor signaling and engagement?
• How does the type of investor (e.g., venture capital, angel investors, crowdfunding participants) influence the evaluation and valuation of AI-enabled entrepreneurial ventures?
• In what ways do institutional factors—such as national culture, legal frameworks, or regulatory environments—affect the role of AI in shaping entrepreneurial performance at various stages of firm development?
• Does the integration of AI in entrepreneurial processes contribute to reducing disparities in access to finance across gender, ethnicity, or geography, or does it risk reinforcing existing structural inequalities?
• How do cross-country variations in institutional, cultural, and regulatory contexts influence both the adoption of AI technologies and their impact on entrepreneurial ecosystem dynamics?

Paper Development Workshop Submission

Special Issue Submission

The AI in Finance conference is associated with a Special Issue in Small Business Economics on Entrepreneurship, Crowdfunding and Family Firms: Honoring the Legacy of Christina Guenther and aims to provide authors with valuable insights from the editorial team prior to submission. Acceptance for presentation at the Conference is not a prerequisite for submission to the Special Issue and in no way guarantees acceptance to the Special Issue. The submission window opens November 15, 2025 and the submission deadline is December 31, 2025. For additional information click here. 

Workshop Fee 

General Conference Fees applies.