At Johns Hopkins Carey School of Business, students don’t just learn artificial intelligence in the classroom. They build it, test it, and make it happen.
student of Master of Science in Information Systems and Artificial Intelligence for Business The program combines technical depth and business acumen to lead AI-driven transformation. Our comprehensive AI-focused curriculum includes advanced courses that prepare students to lead with confidence in today’s technology-driven world.
That spirit of innovation is reflected in the work of current business information systems and artificial intelligence student Tong Zeng, who developed the multimodal AI judge VERA. The tool was recently used at the Word Infinity Showcase and Pitch Competition held at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center.
What is Bella?
VERA (Venture Evaluation and Reasoning Agent) is more than just a text analyzer. Zeng has designed a combination of what you see, what you hear, and the structure of your arguments to help you judge startup pitches like an experienced venture capitalist.
Main features of VERA:
- multimodal input: Capture presentations, PDFs, pitch delivery audio, and structured review rubrics
- advanced reasoning: Achieve reliable audio transcription using state-of-the-art LLM inference and Whisper.
- practical output: Create detailed scorecards, radar chart visualizations, and evidence-based feedback that explain the “why” behind every score.
Why is VERA important to students and founders?
Students preparing for case competitions often receive vague feedback such as “Your presentation was good.” This lack of clarity can be frustrating as it doesn’t provide any real guidance on updates or fixes. This is where VERA comes into play. Address the gap between high-level general praise and specific, actionable guidance. By analyzing visuals such as charts and UI mockups. Assess delivery through clarity, pacing, and persuasion. By evaluating business logic against rubrics, the system provides insights that founders can use to iterate and improve.
Building VERA: Technical rigor and product thinking
Zeng recognized that strong pitching is multifaceted and was looking for an AI system that could mirror the evaluation process of human referees. This project combined several elements taught and emphasized in information systems and artificial intelligence curricula.
- Machine learning and generative AI: Understand reasoning and natural language with advanced LLM
- Responsible AI and evaluation design: Connect model outputs to formal rubrics to generate explainable, evidence-backed feedback.
- System design and deployment: Handle large files, including 10 MB PDFs and 6-minute audio recordings, without crashing and making necessary engineering tradeoffs such as image compression, timeout handling, and fine-tuned performance optimizations.
The project added to Zeng’s already demanding course load. But he says it has been an extremely rewarding experience to see VERA transformed into a robust product that can provide thoughtful analysis in real-world competition. His defining moment during the entire project was watching how VERA reliably handled large documents and long audio inputs, producing a final PDF with a “Potential Concerns” section formatted and ready to share.
“My favorite part was tweaking a large model to adopt a specific professional persona. It was a fascinating challenge to adjust the model so that it didn’t just give general feedback, but could actually ‘think’ and reason like a rigorous investor using our specific rubric. ” says Zeng. “I really enjoyed refining the visual scoring interface and turning the raw data into polished, shiny diagrams that are dynamically arranged so that the scores are perfectly readable and aesthetically pleasing.”
Shaping the next generation of AI innovators
The program’s curriculum combines technical expertise and business decision making. Core and elective courses such as Machine Learning: Design and Deployment, Essentials of AI for Business, Generative AI, Human-AI Convergence for Business, and Responsible AI teach students how to design, build, deploy, and oversee AI initiatives end-to-end, ensuring they are managed effectively and responsibly. The program’s STEM designation and hands-on approach prepare students to create scalable solutions. Additionally, practical experiences such as case competitions, Student Startup Challenges, and Impact Sprints help you apply your knowledge to real-world settings.
“Our goal is to enable students to not only use AI, but also to think critically about how AI can be applied to solve complex business challenges,” said Academic Program Director Changmi Jung. “The curriculum is designed with students in mind for the future by providing a strong foundation in emerging technologies and skills needed to lead in an AI-driven world.”
And VERA exemplifies this approach, showing how students transform classroom learning into AI-driven tools that enhance decision-making, demonstrate multimodal reasoning, prioritize commercialization, and provide explainable and actionable insights.
learn more
If you’re looking to deepen your AI and business skills, a full-time Master of Science program in Information Systems and Artificial Intelligence for Business is offered at Carey’s Washington, DC location. part time program Offered online. The program includes hands-on courses in machine learning, generative AI, cloud computing, responsible AI, and more, and is designed to help you lead AI-driven change across your industry.
Connect with the Johns Hopkins Carey School of Business Admissions Team Learn how to build the next generation of AI tools.
Building on Johns Hopkins’ tradition of excellence and research, we it’s not Trapped in tradition. It was I was inspired by that. in Johns Hopkins Carey Business Schoolwe develop business leaders who seize opportunities, drive change, and create lasting value. Whether full-time or part-time, in-person, online, or hybrid, our MBA and MS degrees in Baltimore and Washington, DC are data-driven and built to help you compete in the global marketplace. Our faculty are thought leaders and trailblazers what Next is the business world and the classroom.
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