1.7.2025
Artificial intelligence is shaping our world. But under what conditions can it do so ethically, responsibly, and inclusively? At ESSEC Business School, the Metalab Institute for AI, Data and Society is dedicated to addressing the social, environmental, and economic challenges posed by AI. By combining research, education, and partnerships, it works to promote responsible AI designed for the common good.
Artificial intelligence,particularly generative AI,is now the subject of both great enthusiasm and measured concern. At ESSEC Business School, this rapidly evolving technology is approached with a dual commitment: responsibility and inclusion. While AI offers significant opportunities for innovation and progress, it also raises critical concerns related to ethics, social justice, and environmental impact. Algorithmic bias and the risk of reinforcing existing inequalities are among the most pressing challenges. In this context, educating future decision-makers to use AI in a thoughtful and informed manner has become essential.
“As a higher education institution, we have a duty to prevent ethical or legal missteps and to ensure that the data feeding algorithms reflect the diversity of our society. Inclusive AI should not replicate inequalities, but rather help correct them—this is what we strive to teach our students. A regulatory framework is currently taking shape, notably through the European Union’s AI Act, to ensure more transparent, traceable, and secure use of these technologies. It is our responsibility to bring these principles to life in our teaching and training programs,” says Anne-Claire Pache, Executive Director of Strategy, Alliances and Societal Engagement.
Since its inception in 2020, the Metalab has focused on the impact of AI on society. Led by Abdelmounaim Derraz, this interdisciplinary laboratory acts as a catalyst for initiatives around AI that is efficient, transparent, and ethical. “Our role is to foster a lucid, critical, and responsible approach to artificial intelligence, both in research and in teaching,” he explains.
The Metalab promotes academic production on algorithmic bias, regulation of models, and transparency in automated decision-making processes. It also supports student projects and collective publications on responsible AI.
The pedagogical challenge is equally important: future ESSEC graduates must understand the mechanisms of AI but also, and more importantly, question its uses. Topics such as ethics, diversity, and inclusion are progressively integrated into the courses, seminars, and workshops offered to students. The goal is to train professionals capable of designing, evaluating, or managing AI systems while considering their societal impact.
Beyond social dimensions, the Metalab also aims to advance thinking on digital sobriety. “We want to intensify our work on more responsible, less energy-consuming uses of AI, in alignment with environmental challenges,” emphasizes Abdelmounaim Derraz. This strategic direction, co-developed with Maud Chassande, ESSEC’s Head of Ecological Transformation, aims to promote the development of frugal artificial intelligence and limit the carbon footprint of emerging technologies.
As Maud Chassande reminds us, “The energy needs related to AI could double in the next five years to power the data centers required for its operation. Thinking about a more frugal AI now is crucial to limiting the ecological footprint generated by the widespread deployment of these new tools.”
The Metalab relies on a strong network of partners to fuel its research and amplify its actions. With Onepoint, in-depth work is conducted on the ethics of AI: seminars, webinars, co-publications, and even organizing a hackathon on responsible AI uses, which brought together 500 high school students in Paris.
Another key player is Accenture, with whom ESSEC had already established a joint research chair and a scientific advisory board. Together, they organize events that spotlight AI innovations with a positive social and environmental impact.
Startups, investment funds, and large corporations: ESSEC is forging synergies to promote AI aligned with the values of sustainability, inclusivity, and transparency.
In a world undergoing transformation, the Metalab contributes to shaping a demanding and informed vision of artificial intelligence. For students, researchers, businesses, and institutions, it sets a clear direction: AI that is useful, frugal, inclusive... and resolutely human.
