Generative AI use in entrepreneurship: An integrative review and the Empowerment–Entrapment Framework
Jackson G. Lu, Gerui Gloria Zhao, Anna Zheng · Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal · 27 Oct 2026
Read original sourceOpen access
Where this sits in the debate
- Will AI actually boost productivity and growth? · its finding: it depends (why studies differ)
Direction of the finding as read from the abstract by an AI model (AI-written).
Abstract
Abstract Research Summary Despite the growing use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in entrepreneurship, research on its impact remains fragmented. To address this limitation, we provide an integrative, entrepreneur‐centered review of how GenAI influences entrepreneurs at each stage of the entrepreneurial process: (1) opportunity recognition and ideation, (2) opportunity evaluation and commitment, (3) resource assembly and mobilization, and (4) venture launch and growth. Based on our review, we propose the Empowerment–Entrapment Framework, which not only catalogs GenAI's benefits and costs throughout the entrepreneurial process but also identifies potential trade‐offs underlying GenAI's double‐edged role. For example, GenAI may improve venture idea quality yet produce hallucinations and biases; boost entrepreneurial self‐efficacy yet heighten overconfidence; increase functional breadth and self‐sufficiency yet reduce prosociality; and enhance productivity yet diminish cognitive engagement, learning, and memory. We also identify features of GenAI that underlie these empowering and entrapping effects. Moreover, we explore boundary conditions that moderate GenAI's effects, including entrepreneurs' expertise, approaches to GenAI use, and personal traits and values. Beyond these theoretical contributions, our review and framework offer practical guidance for entrepreneurs seeking to use GenAI strategically while managing its risks. Managerial Summary We review how GenAI influences entrepreneurs at each stage of the entrepreneurial process: opportunity recognition and ideation, opportunity evaluation and commitment, resource assembly and mobilization, and venture launch and growth. Based on this review, we propose the Empowerment–Entrapment Framework to help entrepreneurs understand GenAI's trade‐offs at each stage. The future of entrepreneurship will depend less on whether entrepreneurs use GenAI than on how they use it. Used thoughtfully, GenAI may empower e
About this publication
Academic journal. Published in an academic journal — typically peer-reviewed before publication, though indexing alone doesn't guarantee review depth.
- Published
- 2026 (recently)
- Citations
- 0 (OpenAlex)
0 citations recorded by OpenAlex — too few 2026 papers in this collection for a fair comparison.
author affiliation matches seed institution massachusetts institute of technology — part of why this paper is in the collection.
Related by theme, not necessarily by method or conclusion.
- Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier: Field Experimental Evidence of the Effects of AI on Knowledge Worker Productivity and Quality
SSRN · 2023 - Generative AI at Work
The Quarterly Journal of Economics · 2025 - The Impact of AI on Developer Productivity: Evidence from GitHub Copilot
arXiv · 2023 - The Productivity J-Curve: How Intangibles Complement General Purpose Technologies
American Economic Journal Macroeconomics · 2020
Overview assembled automatically from collected metadata. How this site is built.