Call for paper: Beyond the Code: Understanding How, When and Why Humans Employ Generative AI in Innovation

Beyond the Code: Understanding How, When and Why Humans Employ Generative AI in Innovation

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is defined as the “frontier of computational advancements that references human intelligence in addressing ever more complex decision-making problems” (Berente et al., 2021:1435). A key development is Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI), particularly Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, which can process and generate human-like language, extract insights, and produce creative outputs (Bouschery et al., 2023). Gen AI has enormous potential to significantly boost national economies. Its widespread adoption could increase GDP in the EU region by +8% (EUR 1.2–1.4 trillion) over the next ten years, provided innovators are equipped with the necessary skills and capabilities (Implement Consulting Group, 2024).

This Special Issue (SI) call aims to advance empirical understanding of how, when, and why humans engage with Gen AI in innovation. We focus on Gen AI as an innovation enabler, and invite submissions to explore the themes, including but not limited to innovation processes, human capital resources, and organizational capabilities. We welcome single- and multi-level studies that examine Gen AI’s role in shaping innovation within and across organizations and encourage contributions that take an interdisciplinary perspective. More importantly, submissions should address managers’ pressing challenges in finding new ways to support and improve innovation by investigating how managers can effectively enhance how employees and executives use Gen AI.

List of Topic Areas

Theme 1: Gen AI and Innovation Processes

Technological advancements have made Gen AI more accessible and affordable across industries (Bouschery et al., 2023; Gama & Magistretti, 2023). Gen AI’s impacts are not limited to what organizations innovate but it also changes how they innovate (Mariani & Dwidedi, 2024). Gen AI can be used to replace existing innovation processes, reinforce them, or reveal unforeseen ways of developing new products and services (Gama & Magistretti, 2023).

Theme 2: Gen AI and Human Capabilities

Microfoundations research shows that innovation is fundamentally driven by people, not organizations, since it is individuals who identify opportunities, generate solutions, and implement them (Felin et al., 2015). Equally, to understand how Gen AI enhances innovation outcomes, such as faster development of better-quality products, services, and processes, it is necessary to examine how individual innovators use Gen AI, what influences its use, and what results emerge from these AI-augmented efforts (Amankwah-Amoah & Appiah, 2025; Annosi et al., 2024; Weiss et al., 2022).

Theme 3: Gen AI and Organizational Capabilities

The rapid evolution of Gen AI demands not only technical adaptation but also new approaches to manage the associated processes, tensions, and frustrations. As Gen AI profoundly alters work design, skill requirements, and professional identities, employees face both new opportunities and psychological challenges. To ensure they can develop the AI-related skills needed for the evolving roles, organizational and managerial support mechanisms have to be developed.

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here.

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see here.

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.