HIM Business School has launched a Master in Applied AI in Customer Experience, designed to turn professionals from non-engineering backgrounds into leaders of AI-enabled transformation. 

Starting in January 2027, the selective 12-month programme will admit just 24 students. Students begin online, spend two months immersed in Macao and the Greater Bay Area, four months immersed in Montreux at the heart of Switzerland’s AI ecosystem, and then close the year with the same flexibility they started with — a fully online capstone project, or an optional onsite leadership term for a dual master’s degree.

It is one few AI master’s programmes anywhere that lets students start and finish entirely online while still delivering two structured, in-person industry immersions on two continents within a single year.

The industry immersions are core to the programme. In Macao and the Greater Bay Area — home to the Shenzhen–Hong Kong–Guangzhou cluster, ranked the world’s #1 innovation cluster in the 2025 Global Innovation Index (WIPO) — students work directly with partner companies and take field trips into Shenzhen’s AI-driven manufacturing and Hong Kong’s fintech ecosystem. In Montreux, they connect with Europe’s AI capital: Switzerland ranks first in the world for AI researchers and inventors per capita (Stanford AI Index Report, 2026), anchored by EPFL Lausanne’s AI Center and the Arc Lémanique research corridor, with field visits extending to Geneva’s AI governance institutions and Europe’s flagship AI summits in Paris and London.

The programme is built specifically for students who want to lead AI-powered change without an engineering or technical background. Through applied coursework and two live industry immersions, students learn to identify opportunities for AI adoption, use data to inform business decisions, and design customer experiences enhanced by emerging technology.

Students can also extend their studies through an optional dual master’s pathway with César Ritz Colleges Switzerland, earning both the Master in Applied AI in Customer Experience from HIM Business School and a Master of Science in Leadership from César Ritz Colleges.

Upon completion, graduates will be equipped to:

• Enhance customer experiences through the strategic application of AI
• Use data analytics to develop insights and support business decisions
• Deliver applied AI projects addressing real-world industry challenges, tested directly with partner companies in Asia and Europe
• Lead AI-enabled transformation and innovation
• Apply ethical, responsible and sustainable approaches to AI

The launch comes as organisations accelerate their adoption of artificial intelligence and demand grows for professionals who can bridge the gap between emerging technologies and business needs. Research from McKinsey and the World Economic Forum points to the scale of the shift already underway: the global AI job market is valued at $1.84 trillion as of the end of 2025, with 13 million new AI jobs projected annually by 2030 — nearly half of that growth concentrated in Asia-Pacific, with Europe close behind. This programme places graduates in both ecosystems.

“At HIM Business School, ‘Be World Ready’ has never been a slogan — it’s how we’ve always taught our BBA students in Montreux to think: with curiosity, adaptability, and a genuine grasp of the world they’re entering. Launching this Master in Applied AI in Customer Experience wasn’t a strategic pivot for us. It was the obvious next step. Today, there is no version of being world-ready that doesn’t mean being AI-ready,” said Claire Jollain, Dean, HIM Business School.

For additional insights, trends, and perspectives, visit the conversation on AI in Business Education.