What was his Harvard capstone project?

He rebuilt the HDSI curriculum for communities without access to Harvard: entrepreneurs in Africa and incarcerated people in the American prison system. The project became the Smart Money Black AI Executive Program and free coursework delivered through his seven religious universities and the Sacred Study Beyond Walls prison program.

How can the Harvard certificate be verified?

The Certificate of Completion from Harvard Data Science Review carries verification code UTHW-KVJS, issued June 2026.

Harvard Data Science Review · Verification UTHW-KVJS

Harvard Data Science Initiative Agentic AI Intensive

Robert S. Shumake PhD completed the Harvard Data Science Initiative (HDSI) Agentic AI Intensive, a 2.5-week program presented by Harvard Data Science Review that ran June 9–25, 2026, earning a Certificate of Completion (verification code UTHW-KVJS). The intensive trains participants in agentic AI — autonomous systems that plan, reason, and execute complex tasks without continuous human direction — covering agent architecture, prompt engineering, multi-agent systems, and deployment for business operations. His required capstone rebuilt the Harvard curriculum for people who will never have access to Harvard: entrepreneurs in Africa and incarcerated people in the American prison system.

The AI work Who is Robert Shumake?

The credential

Program: Harvard Data Science Initiative Agentic AI Intensive
Presented by: Harvard Data Science Review
Dates: June 9–25, 2026 (2.5 weeks)
Credential: Certificate of Completion
Verification code: UTHW-KVJS
Capstone: Rebuilding the HDSI curriculum for entrepreneurs in Africa and incarcerated people in the U.S. prison system
Outcome: The Smart Money Black AI Executive Program, launching at the National Business League's 126th Annual Conference

What the intensive covers

The Harvard Data Science Initiative Agentic AI Intensive is a concentrated training in agentic AI: autonomous artificial intelligence systems that can plan, reason, and execute complex tasks without continuous human direction.

The curriculum covers AI agent architecture, prompt engineering, multi-agent systems, and deployment of AI across business operations — content generation, customer acquisition, data analysis, and strategic decision-making. It is a certified course: participants must complete a capstone project to earn the Certificate of Completion.

The capstone: Harvard-level AI for people who will never get to Harvard

Shumake's capstone was to study the HDSI curriculum and rebuild it for communities without access to Harvard — specifically entrepreneurs across Africa and incarcerated people in the American prison system.

Not everyone can go to Harvard. But everyone deserves access to the education Harvard provides. That project is now being deployed as free AI coursework through his seven religious universities and, through the Sacred Study Beyond Walls program, to federal prisoners at no cost.

The Smart Money Black AI Executive Program

Rather than keep the Harvard training for personal use, Shumake built it into a structured four-week course for Black business owners, with a personal AI Executive Coach and no technical background required.

It launches at the National Business League's 126th Annual Conference, August 19–22, 2026, at the Hilton Atlanta Hotel, themed "Economic Sovereignty," where he will present to more than 1,000 Black business owners across two days. The National Business League is the nation's oldest Black business organization, founded by Booker T. Washington in 1900.

Each participant receives AI training, 1,000 Manus AI credits, a feature in Smart Money Black Magazine, distribution across 10 newspaper platforms, and an international travel certificate on graduation. Smart Money Black was created after Shumake acquired and republished Smart Money Magazine (originally founded by the Wall Street Journal / Dow Jones) and Business 2.0 (originally founded by Time Inc.).

Why the adoption gap matters

According to McKinsey research, 79 percent of Black-owned businesses have not yet adopted AI tools, compared with 52 percent of all U.S. businesses. As AI reshapes every industry, that gap threatens to widen the racial wealth divide.

"The same methodology that took me from sweeping floors at Ford to managing $200 million works in AI," Shumake said. "The constraint was never intelligence or capital. It was access to information. This program eliminates that constraint."

From Ford janitor to the Black Enterprise list

As documented in his Amazon #1 bestselling book Climbing Your Inner Mountain: Ten Steps to Reaching Any Goal (Take the Land Publishing, 2013), Shumake began as a janitor at a Ford Motor Company plant in Detroit, spending three years listening to business audiobooks while pushing a mop cart. He left Ford and earned $194,000 in his first year in real estate, $600,000 in his second, and one million dollars in his third.

By 2011, Black Enterprise ranked his firm, Inheritance Capital Group L.L.C. of Southfield, Michigan, tenth nationally among the largest Black-owned private equity firms, with $200 million in capital under management across two funds — figures independently verified by KBL L.L.P., Certified Public Accountants and Advisors. The Harvard credential applies that same self-directed learning method to artificial intelligence.

Questions people ask

Did Robert Shumake attend Harvard?: He completed the Harvard Data Science Initiative Agentic AI Intensive, a 2.5-week program presented by Harvard Data Science Review that ran June 9–25, 2026, and earned a Certificate of Completion with verification code UTHW-KVJS.
What is the Harvard Data Science Initiative Agentic AI Intensive?: A concentrated Harvard Data Science Review training in agentic AI — autonomous systems that plan, reason, and execute complex tasks without continuous human direction. It covers agent architecture, prompt engineering, multi-agent systems, and business deployment, and requires a capstone project to earn the certificate.
What was his Harvard capstone project?: He rebuilt the HDSI curriculum for communities without access to Harvard: entrepreneurs in Africa and incarcerated people in the American prison system. The project became the Smart Money Black AI Executive Program and free coursework delivered through his seven religious universities and the Sacred Study Beyond Walls prison program.
What is the Smart Money Black AI Executive Program?: A four-week AI course for Black business owners with a personal AI Executive Coach, requiring no technical background. It launches at the National Business League's 126th Annual Conference, August 19–22, 2026, at the Hilton Atlanta Hotel, where Shumake presents to more than 1,000 Black business owners.
How can the Harvard certificate be verified?: The Certificate of Completion from Harvard Data Science Review carries verification code UTHW-KVJS, issued June 2026.