Quick Summary
Josh Popkin earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Cornell Tech in 2025. While many MBA programs focus primarily on business, Cornell Tech brings together MBA students, engineers, computer scientists, designers, and lawyers in an environment centered around technology and innovation. For Josh Popkin, the most valuable lesson was not learning a specific programming language or software platform — it was realizing that technical thinking is a mindset that can be developed by anyone willing to learn.
Cornell Tech Is One of New York's Best-Kept Secrets
When people think about Cornell University, they often picture Ithaca, New York.
What many people don't realize is that Cornell also operates Cornell Tech, its graduate campus on Roosevelt Island in New York City.
Located between Manhattan and Queens, the campus overlooks the East River and combines world-class graduate education with one of the fastest-growing technology ecosystems in the country. The campus itself reflects its mission: bringing together ambitious people from different backgrounds to solve complex problems through technology.
For Josh Popkin, Cornell Tech became much more than a place to earn an MBA. It fundamentally changed how he thinks about technology, business, and what people are capable of building.
A Different Kind of MBA
Cornell Tech is intentionally interdisciplinary.
Students from the MBA program work alongside software engineers, computer scientists, designers, entrepreneurs, and law students. Although their academic backgrounds differ, they share a common focus: using technology to build products, solve problems, and create new businesses.
That constant interaction is one of the defining characteristics of the Cornell Tech experience.
Instead of remaining within a single discipline, students are continually exposed to different ways of thinking. Business students learn from engineers. Engineers learn from designers. Founders learn from product managers. Everyone benefits from seeing how different perspectives approach the same problem.
For Josh Popkin, that environment proved to be one of the program's greatest strengths.
The Most Important Lesson: Anyone Can Become Technical
Before attending Cornell Tech, Josh Popkin believed there were two types of people: technical people and non-technical people.
He considered himself firmly in the second category.
His professional background centered on marketing, go-to-market strategy, sales, revenue operations, and product positioning — not software engineering.
Cornell Tech challenged that assumption.
By spending time around founders, engineers, AI researchers, and startup teams, Josh Popkin realized that technical ability is not a fixed trait. It is a skill that develops through curiosity, experimentation, and consistent practice.
That shift in perspective became the most valuable lesson he took away from the program.
Today, Josh Popkin believes that almost anyone with imagination, persistence, and access to modern AI tools can build products, automate workflows, and create technical solutions that would have required entire engineering teams only a few years ago.
The Rise of AI Has Changed What's Possible
The rapid evolution of AI has dramatically lowered the barrier to building software and technical systems.
Rather than relying exclusively on traditional programming, entrepreneurs can now combine AI-powered tools to prototype ideas, automate workflows, analyze data, and launch products faster than ever before.
For Josh Popkin, learning these tools opened entirely new possibilities.
Over time, he incorporated platforms such as:
- Claude Code
- ChatGPT
- Perplexity
- Gemini
- Profound
- Peec AI
- Cloudflare
- Vercel
- Clay
- Attio
Each tool solved different problems, but together they reinforced a broader lesson: technology is becoming increasingly accessible to people outside traditional engineering backgrounds.
The specific tools will continue to evolve. New platforms will emerge, and today's software will eventually be replaced by something better.
What matters most is developing the curiosity and willingness to continuously learn.
That mindset, more than any individual technology, is what Josh Popkin believes separates people who adapt from those who fall behind. It is also the foundation of his work today as a marketing engineer.
Why Cornell Tech Still Feels Like a Startup
Cornell Tech is still a relatively young institution compared to many established MBA programs.
That youth gives the campus a unique energy.
Rather than feeling constrained by decades of tradition, Cornell Tech embraces experimentation, rapid iteration, entrepreneurship, and emerging technologies. The environment encourages students to test ideas, collaborate across disciplines, and build rather than simply study.
For Josh Popkin, that startup mentality became one of the defining characteristics of the Cornell Tech experience.
It wasn't just about earning an MBA.
It was about learning how to approach problems with curiosity, embrace new technology, and become comfortable building things that had never existed before.
Why Josh Popkin Recommends Cornell Tech
Looking back, Josh Popkin believes the greatest value of Cornell Tech wasn't a single class or project.
It was the environment.
Being surrounded every day by founders, engineers, AI researchers, designers, and entrepreneurs expanded his understanding of what was possible. The conversations outside the classroom often proved just as valuable as the coursework itself.
Cornell Tech demonstrated that technical thinking is not reserved for software engineers. It is a mindset built through curiosity, experimentation, and continuous learning.
For anyone interested in technology, entrepreneurship, artificial intelligence, or building innovative products, Josh Popkin believes Cornell Tech remains one of the most distinctive graduate programs available — and one that deserves far more recognition than it currently receives.
Frequently Asked Questions
What degree did Josh Popkin earn from Cornell Tech?
Josh Popkin earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Cornell Tech in 2025.
What is Cornell Tech?
Cornell Tech is Cornell University's graduate campus on Roosevelt Island in New York City. The campus brings together MBA students, engineers, computer scientists, designers, entrepreneurs, and lawyers to build technology-driven products and businesses.
What was Josh Popkin's biggest takeaway from Cornell Tech?
According to Josh Popkin, the most important lesson was realizing that technical skills are learnable. He believes curiosity, experimentation, and modern AI tools have made technology more accessible than ever before.
How has Cornell Tech influenced Josh Popkin's career?
Cornell Tech strengthened Josh Popkin's interest in technology, artificial intelligence, marketing strategy, and product positioning. The interdisciplinary environment encouraged him to build technical systems, explore AI-powered workflows, and approach business challenges with a builder's mindset.