The Luiss Project for higher education and postgraduate training began in the early 1970s when Umberto Agnelli brought together a significant group of private companies, public entities, and financial institutions to fund the restructuring of the courses offered by a pre-existing religious university that was in liquidation. The initiative aimed to spread a more in-depth culture of entrepreneurship, business management, and social communication to the central and southern regions of Italy. These areas had been less involved than the northern regions in the intense industrial development of previous years. The goal was to create a common language for interpreting the country ’s economic and political reality, one that could align the development objectives of businesses with those of the public administration. The project proposed an innovative range of study and research programs closely aligned with the functions of a free university in the capital. Specifically, the aim was for the university programs to excel in their economic, legal, and social aspects, fostering the development of a modern leadership class capable of enhancing the country's international competitiveness and promoting more balanced regional development.

The “Luiss project” is characterized by a rigorous admissions process, full-time classroom attendance matched by active faculty involvement, and ample space and services.

The cost to participants for this education, which is expressly designed to be elitist and meritocratic, ensures the University's financial balance.

This project received a significant boost under the presidency of Attorney Gianni Agnelli (1974-76), Confindustria also provided a strong boost to the project. In 1978, Confindustria appointed its pro-tempore President, Dr. Guido Carli, as the head of the new institution. Later, with a Board resolution in the summer of 1980, it appointed Dr. Vittorio Merloni as President and definitively acquired control of ALuiss – the entity that, by law, promotes the Free University and guarantees its economic autonomy.

After fulfilling its primary role of working with Confindustria to transform the old educational structures into the modern university that it is today, the group of funders became the current “Associazione Amici della Luiss” in 1985. Under the chairmanship of Umberto Agnelli first, and now Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, it has focused on raising and distributing resources. This is done both to help high-potential students without financial means gain access to the university and to enable the best Luiss graduates to pursue scientific research (through doctoral programs) as a path to teaching or advanced professions.