20/10/2026
AI as a Marketing Tool: Nine Days of Experiencing the Digital Transformation Across Europe
From 2–10 October 2026, Irish College Leuven hosted a fantastic group of students from Appalachian State University's Walker College of Business for a faculty led program on AI & Digital Transformation : A case study of the EU Innovation Hub. Following a carefully curated itinerary tailored to the program by Emmalyne Smith, one of our Programme Managers, the students travelled across Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands as part of an experiential educational opportunity that exposed them to the numerous ways that artificial intelligence and emerging digital technologies are reshaping business, marketing, industry and society. They met business leaders, academics, technology specialists, researchers and innovation practitioners; visited organisations putting digital transformation into practice; and explored the European institutions and ecosystems helping shape the future of business.
The visits went exceedingly well, and the enthusiasm of the group made the experience all the more rewarding.
Starting with AI: From promise to practical application
The students started their academic programme with a visit to Discai and had a truly memorable conversation with CEO Fabrice Deprez.
Born out of KBC Bank & Verzekering, one of Europe's leading financial institutions, the visit offered an opportunity to learn about the company's story, explore its approach to creating value through AI, and how the company uses their technology to serve and protect the bank's customers. It was an excellent starting point for the programme, grounding the conversation in a real business context, and showing the students that AI can be responsibly used to solve problems, improve performance and deliver better outcomes.
The academic perspective followed with two thought-provoking presentations. Gilles Pittoors of KU Leuven introduced the group to the European Union, providing context for the political and institutional landscape in which European businesses operate. Martin Butler, Professor of Management Practice at Vlerick Business School, then explored the future of AI & Digital Transformation. These presentations provided an academic scaffold on which the students could build through their upcoming experiences.
Brussels: Where innovation and the EU Meet
A study visit to Brussels brought the group directly into the world of European innovation support and policymaking.
At BeCentral, the students explored what a European Digital Innovation Hub looks like in Belgium and how it brings together expertise from industry and academia to help organisations embrace innovation, especially within the field of AI and other emerging tech industries.
We then visited the European Parliament and European Commission, gaining insight into the institutions that play such an important role in shaping Europe's future and some of the challenges that they face in the future regarding AI.
For anyone working at the intersection of marketing, technology and business strategy, understanding this policy environment is increasingly important. Decisions about digitalisation and AI do not happen in a vacuum; they are influenced by a broader framework of European priorities and regulation, and organisations also increasingly need the knowledge, support and capabilities to implement it effectively and sustainably.
Discovering the innovation ecosystem of Flanders
Brussels, however, only represents one part of a much larger tech ecosystem that exists within Belgium. Flanders has invested large sums of money into developing several different technological institutions and campuses across the province.
In Mechelen, for example, the students visited Thomas More University Centre of Expertise for Sustainable Business and Digital Innovation. This institution teaches and prepares the next generation of students ready and willing to push the technological envelope. Tom Rumes, professor and programme manager at Thomas More, took the students on a tour of the school's facilities and presented to them on a variety of AI-related research projects and themes.
From there, the students traveled to Hasselt and Genk, where we encountered two very different perspectives on innovation.
At Corda Campus, the group discovered a vibrant ecosystem of startups, scale-ups and established Belgian and international companies. With approximately 250 companies and 5,000 people, the campus provides a setting where technology-driven businesses can connect, collaborate and develop new ideas. A guided visit offered another perspective on the infrastructure and environments supporting innovation.
The students followed this with a visit to EnergyVille, on the former Waterschei mining site in Genk. Through a presentation and laboratory tour, they explored an innovation environment focused on energy efficiency, decarbonisation and sustainable urban environments.
Across borders: Digital communities and the future of talent
Towards the end of the programme, they crossed into Germany and the Netherlands to explore innovation from a distinctly cross-border perspective.
In Aachen, the students visited digitalHUB Aachen, housed in the former St. Elisabeth church. Opened in 2017, this unusual digital innovation space has become a meeting place for startups, small and medium-sized enterprises and established industries. Its setting captures the spirit of transformation itself: taking an existing space and reimagining it as a place for new ideas, collaboration and entrepreneurial activity.
The students next journeyed on to Maastricht, where they met with Jos Meessens, founders and director of Meet the Youngsters, a career platform connecting young people and businesses across the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion. Through tools such as serious gaming, virtual reality experiences, events and company vlogs, the organisation helps young people explore career opportunities while supporting employers in attracting talent and strengthening their employer brands.
This was an especially relevant perspective for anyone working in marketing and communications. Digital transformation is not only changing how organisations operate; it is also changing how they communicate, engage with audiences and connect with the next generation of talent.
Bringing it all together: AI-native marketing at iO
The final full day saw the students in Amsterdam, at iO, a digital agency positioning itself as an AI-native partner in marketing and technology. With more than 2,000 experts across 12 campuses and over 1,500 organisations served across Europe, iO brings together marketing, technology and creativity to help organisations build better digital experiences.
While the programme was certainly academically intense, the students did manage to save some time for a bit of fun and culture. From exploring Leuven's historic university library and bell tower to discovering the craft of Belgian chocolate-making, enjoying a tour of Amsterdam's famous canals, a visit to the Bokrijk Open Air Museum, free-time in Mechelen and Maastricht, and a number of rumored visits to Leuven's local karaoke venue, the cultural experiences added another unforgettable dimension to the journey.
Nine days. Multiple perspectives. One shared learning experience
Bringing an international group together to learn from different organisations, industries and countries creates opportunities to challenge assumptions, exchange perspectives and see familiar challenges in new ways.
As they traveled across Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, the students encountered different approaches to innovation, business development, technology adoption and collaboration. Yet the underlying questions were remarkably consistent.
How can organisations make better use of AI? How do we ensure that digital transformation creates genuine value? How can businesses, academia, policymakers and innovation ecosystems work together to prepare for the future?
We sincerely hope that the conversations, experiences, visits, and connections created during this programme made those questions all the more meaningful and have gotten Appalachian State's students thinking about the future of their industry.
Irish College Leuven would like to offer a sincere thank you to all the speakers, organisations, hosts, and partners who welcomed us, shared their expertise and helped make the visits such a success. We would also like to give a huge thank you to the group's outstanding supervisors, Dr. Lubna Nafees, Dr. Neel Das, and Laura Scobey four their enthusiasm, care, and leadership in both developing and executing the programme, and to the fantastic group of participants, whose engagement, curiosity and enthusiasm made the experience so rewarding. We look forward to welcoming them back in 2026!
