We are excited to announce that ACERE 2026 will be hosting a remarkable lineup of distinguished scholars in entrepreneurship. These leaders bring a wealth of knowledge and ground-breaking research that has significantly shaped our understanding of entrepreneurship and innovation.
Panellists will be announced soon, but we’re excited to confirm the following keynote speakers:
Erkko Autio
Professor Erkko Autio FBA FFASL is Chair in Technology Venturing and Entrepreneurship at Imperial College Business School, London.
A leading scholar in entrepreneurship and innovation, Erkko has conducted pioneering research in areas including digital entrepreneurship, innovation ecosystems, business model innovation, and entrepreneurial resilience. His work has been cited over 60,000 times (Google Scholar), and he ranks among the top 0.2% of scientists globally in research impact. In 2024, he received the USC Helena Yli-Renko Research Impact Award for the most cited paper published in the field of entrepreneurship six years prior.
He was a co-founder of the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Institute and a key contributor to the Global Entrepreneurship Index and the EU Regional Entrepreneurship Index. He was also a founding member of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), the world’s largest ongoing research consortium in social sciences.
Professor Autio’s work has been featured in major media outlets including The Economist, Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and CNN. He has received numerous best paper awards and was recognised as one of the 50 most influential management scholars worldwide in terms of research impact (Aguinis et al., 2012).
He has advised the European Commissioner for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and worked extensively with governments and industry in Europe and Asia on innovation policy. Four of his students’ ventures have been listed among Europe’s ‘100 Hottest Technology Ventures’, and student-founded businesses under his guidance have generated billions in new market value.
Erkko has held editorial board positions for leading journals including Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, and Journal of Business Venturing, and his work has been published in top-tier outlets across entrepreneurship and management.
He was elected Fellow of the British Academy in 2019 and the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters in 2024.
Michael Lounsbury
Michael Lounsbury is a Professor of Business Strategy & Entrepreneurship (part-time). His primary appointment is at the University of Alberta School of Business where he is a Professor, the A.F (Chip) Collins Chair, the Chair of the Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Management Department, and the Academic Director of the eHUB entrepreneurship centre.
His research focuses on the relationship between organizational and institutional change, entrepreneurial dynamics, and the emergence of new industries and practices. In addition to serving on a number of editorial boards, Professor Lounsbury is the series editor of Research in the Sociology of Organizations. He has previously served as Chair of the Organization and Management Theory Division of the Academy of Management. His Ph.D. is in Sociology and Organization Behavior from Northwestern University.