Williams led Gen AI 101, one of the largest generative AI courses at a leading research university, expanding from IU students to alumni and ultimately to the public.

The course materials integrate ethics and governance, addressing environmental impact, model alignment, and safeguards to prepare students for responsible AI use in business.

Williams teaches with an animated AI avatar, Crimson, illustrating his innovative, tech-forward approach to pedagogy.

Real-world impact includes IU Health physicians using AI for leadership and staffing, Eli Lilly piloting the course for global AI fluency, and Pfizer incorporating it into its AI certification program, with high completion rates.

Kelley established the Virtual Advanced Business Technologies Department to coordinate AI education, expanding from 30 founding faculty to about 120 and integrating AI into 565 Kelley courses.

Pat Hopkins, Kelley’s dean, praised Williams for making AI concepts accessible and scalable with a practical, non-technical teaching style and a future-focused curriculum.

Gen AI 101 and 201: AI Skills for Business are now required at Kelley, with an additional course, AI for Business: Practical Skills, offered to the public.

Williams joined Kelley in 2015, earned his doctorate from the University of Oregon, and holds degrees from Texas A&M; he is recognized for an engaging teaching style and collaboration with AI in education.

Williams co-teaches GenAI 101 with Crimson and helped scale it into a credit-bearing program now required for incoming Kelley undergraduates, with GenAI 101 and AI Skills in Business serving around 4,000 students each term.

IU and Kelley faculty developed broad AI education efforts, including course workshops, the Whole-of-school AI Leadership Summit, and open AI playbooks for faculty and students.

Williams emphasizes the human side of scale, focusing on individual learning outcomes and continually asking what the course actually delivers for students.

Brian Williams, chair of Kelley’s Virtual Advanced Business Technologies Department, was named Poets&Quants’ 2026 Business Professor of the Year for his work integrating generative AI into Kelley’s curriculum.