The University of Chicago Booth School of Business has announced the launch of the GEP Center for Supply Chain Innovation and Applied Technologies, a new research hub dedicated to advancing the study and practice of supply chain management in an era increasingly shaped by AI and data-driven technologies.
Established with support from GEP, an AI-native procurement and supply chain firm, the center will bring together research, education, and industry collaboration to explore how emerging technologies are transforming global value chains. The new initiative marks Chicago Booth’s thirteenth research center and will be housed within the school’s operations management area.
Booth’s operations management faculty have long been at the forefront of studying how disruptions and financial shocks ripple through global supply networks, as well as how companies can build resilience through strategies such as flexible network design and rerouting. Their work also explores optimization techniques to improve real-time demand fulfillment, inventory management, and the alignment of supply with demand. The GEP Center aims to expand this impact by connecting academic insights with real-world applications.
“At this moment, there is a profound opportunity for Chicago Booth to foster critical research and drive impact in the supply chain field,” said Madhav Rajan, Steven S. Wymer Dean of Chicago Booth. “Our vision is for the GEP Center to become known as the preeminent knowledge hub in this space and to connect our faculty’s research with applications in the real world.”
In addition to advancing research, the center will support the development of new curricula and create opportunities for engagement among faculty, students, and industry leaders. A key focus will be examining how technologies such as agentic AI are reshaping supply chain practices and operations management, with an emphasis on both innovation and practical implementation.
The partnership also builds on a longstanding connection between Booth and GEP. Three of the company’s cofounders—Subhash Makhija, MBA ’96; Roopa Gandhi Makhija, MBA ’96; and Jagadish Turimella, MBA ’97—are alumni of the school.
“The world’s supply chains—essential to every business and every economy—are undergoing an industrial revolution,” said Subhash Makhija, CEO of GEP. “AI, data, and new technologies are helping organizations build far more resilient, sustainable, autonomous and efficient global value chains. We’re proud to establish this center with Chicago Booth because there is no institution better able to combine data, rigorous research and quantum computing to advance supply chain innovation for the benefit of businesses and society.”
John R. Birge, Hobart W. Williams Distinguished Service Professor of Operations Management, has been named the inaugural faculty director of the GEP Center. Under his leadership, the center is expected to further strengthen Booth’s position as a leader in operations and supply chain research.
“GEP’s support in creating this center will expand the reach of our faculty’s research into the future evolution of supply chains and the novel technologies that will drive value creation,” Birge said. “Our foundational focus on rigorous evidence-based analysis with practical relevance makes Chicago Booth an ideal place for this work. I am truly excited to be part of this new chapter for our field.”
With the launch of the GEP Center, Chicago Booth is deepening its commitment to addressing one of the most critical and rapidly evolving areas of the global economy, positioning itself—and its students—at the forefront of supply chain innovation.
