AI Essentials for SMEs – Your Practical Introduction to Artificial Intelligence

Unlock the potential of AI – tailored to your business reality. Training by Hochschule Luzern (HSLU)

 

Artificial Intelligence is no longer reserved for tech giants. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can also leverage AI to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and drive innovation — but only if the decision-makers understand how it works and what it can do. This hands-on course is designed to make AI accessible, relevant, and actionable for professionals.

 

 

What You Will Learn

By the end of this course, you will:

 

• understand the key concepts of AI, machine learning, and data,
• recognize real-world AI use cases from various industries,
• have developed your own AI project idea with measurable business value,
• know how tools like ChatGPT work and how to apply them,
• feel confident taking the next steps in your organization’s AI adoption.

 

Course Structure (5 Days)

Day 1 – Foundations of AI

• History and evolution of AI
• Key concepts: AI, machine learning, deep learning, supervised and previsedised learning, etc.
• The role of data in AI: what makes data “good” or “bad”?
• Hands-on intro to Python and data analysis

 

Day 2 – Digital Mindset & Ideation

• From automation to intelligence
• What AI can and cannot (yet) do
• Ethical and societal implications
• Use cases across industries (e.g., marketing, logistics, HR)
• Workshop: brainstorm your own AI project ideas in teams

 

Day 3 – Infrastructure for AI

• Cloud vs. on-premise: what’s right for your business?
• Key considerations: costs, privacy (GDPR), performance
• Cloud platforms: overview of AWS, Google Cloud & more
• Guest speaker and networking apero

 

Day 4 – Large Language Models & RAG

• How models like ChatGPT work
• Basics of prompt engineering – how to "talk" to AI
• RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation): what problem it solves and how it works
• Practical use cases, legal and ethical considerations, AI agents in business

 

Day 5 – Final Projects & Presentations

• Team project: develop and pitch an AI use case
• Final presentations and reflection
• Wrap-up and how to continue your journey