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The Future Belongs to Those Who See AI as a Partner, Not a Threat

They call him the Godfather of AI.

Geoffrey Hinton spent his life building the foundation for artificial intelligence. But today, he’s sounding the alarm. In a recent conversation with Steven Bartlett, Hinton didn’t hold back: AI is evolving faster than most people, companies, or governments can comprehend. It’s not just coming for routine jobs. It’s coming for ours…the cognitive, creative, and strategic roles we thought were safe.

But here’s the truth: AI doesn’t have to replace you. You can evolve with it, if you’re willing to let go of yesterday’s mindset.

Job Loss Isn’t on the Horizon. It’s Already Here.

One of the most chilling moments in the conversation was a simple anecdote:

A major company had over 7,000 employees. Today? Just over 3,000. Why? AI agents are now handling 80% of their customer interactions.

This isn’t automation at the edges. This is exponential disruption at the core of the business.

We are moving from roles defined by tasks to roles defined by transformation. AI is taking over the execution. What’s left for us is vision, empathy, creativity, decision-making, and human connection. But this is only true if we claim them.

AI Won’t Just Do the Work. It Will Outthink the Workforce.

Hinton believes we’re 10 to 20 years away from creating AI that is smarter than humans at nearly everything. And he’s not alone. These systems will be digital, immortal, networked, and infinitely upgradable.

And yet, despite the scale of that possibility, we’re still using AI like it’s a glorified search engine.

We have to stop thinking of AI as a “tool.” It’s a collaborator, a co-pilot, a partner in reimagining what work can be and what we can do now that we couldn’t do without AI and what AI can delivery that it couldn’t without us.

How to Thrive in the AI Economy: The Human Upgrade

Here’s what I believe:

This is not the end of work. It’s the beginning of a different kind of value.

If you want to thrive in this new world, you must evolve in three directions:

1. Reimagine Your Role Through the Lens of AI

Start with a personal audit:

What tasks do I do that AI can already perform?What decisions do I make that could be enhanced by AI?What uniquely human traits do I bring to the table…creativity, empathy, ethics, intuition?

Then ask:

What could I do if I had an intelligent assistant working with me every second of the day?

The best future roles aren’t written in job descriptions. They’re designed by those who can imagine what’s possible with exponential capabilities.

That’s why when we say, “AI will take the mundane and the repetition out of our work to free us up for more creative, thoughtful, and meaningful work,” we have to take the next step.

What is that work specifically?

How would I define the job description?

Besides time saved, cost takeout and cost reduction, how would I measure value creation and delivery? How might I redefine productivity with AI?

2. Become a Systems Thinker, not Just a Skill Executor

Most people are trying to “learn AI.” That’s good. But it’s not enough.

The future will be built by those who:

See the system.Understand the impact of AI on their work and industry, now and as AI evolves.Architect new outcomes with AI, not just operate today’s AI tools.

We need a shift from digital literacy to AI fluency, not just how to use the tech, but how to reimagine work, experience, and even identity through it.

3. Lead With Purpose, Not Just Productivity

One of Hinton’s most human insights was this:

“Even if people receive universal basic income, many will still be unhappy—because they’ve lost their sense of purpose.”

If AI were to take jobs, and we received UBI, we would be an unhappy society, Hinton claimed. Why? He explained that we need purpose in our lives. We don’t just work for income. We work for identity. Dignity. Meaning.

In the AI era, those who thrive will be those who define success by impact, not just input.

This is the time to ask:

What do I stand for?Who do I serve?What kind of world am I helping to create?Inequality Will Rise, Unless We Design for Inclusion

Hinton was clear: AI will benefit the few unless we intentionally democratize its value.

The companies that build and own AI will scale wealth faster than any moment in human history. The gap between those who use AI to replace others and those who use it to uplift everyone will define whether this era is remembered as one of collapse or reinvention.

We Still Have a Choice

Hinton ended his reflections with this:

“There’s still a chance that we can develop AI that won’t want to take over. And because there’s a chance—we must invest in it.”

I would add this:

There’s still a chance that we, too, can evolve. And because there’s a chance, we must invest in ourselves…starting today.

You don’t have to be replaced by AI. But you do have to replace the old version of you that wasn’t ready for this moment. Disruption starts by disrupting yourself. Train your brainto work exponentially with AI.

Create an augmented version of yourself to prevent against automation replacing you.

The future belongs to the curious, the courageous, and the compassionate. So ask yourself: Now that AI is here… what kind of augmented human will you become?

Please watch (and share)!

Please read my new book, Mindshift: Transform Leadership, Drive Innovation, and Reshape the Future

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Signals from the Future: What AI Interviews Reveal about Next Management

The Global Peter Drucker Forum presents a special webinar that centers on AI and leadership. Please join Tony O’Driscoll (Duke University), Johan Roos, and me tomorrow as we explore “Signals from the Future: What AI Interviews Reveal about Next Management.”  RSVP here.

 

 

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Workflow: The AI-driven CRM revolution

Originally published in Workflow

By ServiceNow executives, Dave Wright, Chief Innovation Officer; Brian Solis, Global Head of Innovation; and Simon Grice, Senior Director, Innovation

How reimagining customer relationship management for an AI-first world can help deliver more relevant, personalized, and productive experiences

CRM has all the ingredients of an epic enterprise tech success story: massive growth, industrywide adoption, and innumerable technological innovations that have suggested new strategic possibilities for the enterprise over the span of decades. There’s only one problem: Despite massive promise, it often doesn’t deliver.

CRM solutions are ubiquitous among sales, support, and marketing teams, but it remains difficult to fully leverage every CRM feature to maximize business value and return on investment. Getting data into a CRM can be tedious, manual, and imperfect, leading to poor insights. Information remains scattered across organizational and technological silos, resulting in an incomplete understanding of the customer. CRM solutions can be clunky to use and complicated to implement, manage, and integrate with existing systems.

CRM systems also increasingly seem out of touch with the changing landscape. Customer behaviors are evolving and no longer reflect the top-down or linear models CRM was designed to support. And as our understanding of customer journeys and experiences becomes far more expansive, disconnected systems of record increasingly feel inadequate. When you take this all together, is anyone truly happy with their CRM system? Spoiler alert: The answer is no.

That’s about to change. Thanks to agentic AI, these persistent challenges will soon become a thing of the past. The advent of autonomous AI agents is changing the CRM paradigm. As Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s recent comments suggest, this transformation signals CRM’s post-SaaS era.

What will that look like? Imagine a future where AI agents eliminate the need for traditional applications and deliver more autonomous, personalized, and intelligent CRM. Visionary companies that boldly embrace this new age will have the opportunity to put the customer back in customer relationship management.

The AI difference

Today, employees interface with CRM systems through traditional user interfaces, just like all software. Even with AI, users are, for the most part, manually interacting with these systems, with generative AI providing summarization, search, and curated recommendations to help optimize productivity and outcomes.

But in the agentic era, the way users interact with CRM solutions will completely change. AI agents will provide the user interface as well as execute tasks. These agents will operate not just in CRM, but across all relevant apps and databases to orchestrate and integrate the entire customer lifecycle. Let’s look at a B2B example:

At the beginning of the lifecycle, AI agents will monitor market trends, company behavior, executive statements and sentiment, and other data to identify high-intent prospects before they are even in the funnel.
During sales engagement and progression, AI agents will initiate personalized conversations, preemptively answer questions based on past interactions, and recommend actions to optimize revenue. Because AI agents will have broad visibility into things such as social media activity and online engagement, they will drive individual instead of account-based customer management.

After the sale, AI agents can monitor customer sentiment and suggest upselling and retention actions.
With AI agents handling the execution, customer service teams can focus on relationship building, strategy, and creativity—all possible because of the integration of previously disconnected, siloed systems and operations.

In the agentic AI era, traditional interfaces and a SaaS-based mindset will constrain what’s possible. If we keep looking to specific software with siloed data for solutions, we will not be able to fully capitalize on the power of AI, which will prevent agentic AI from working across vital systems. Instead of adding AI to legacy SaaS models, AI can liberate CRM from any one system into a network of AI agents that proactively manage relationships, decision-making, and customer interactions.

CRM reimAIgined

With agentic AI, CRM can operate as an intelligent system that autonomously manages the entire sales pipeline. Humans will shift from operators to supervisors overseeing AI agents that handle the day-to-day CRM work and serve as the user interface. AI agents will actively manage the customer lifecycle, executing actions, adjusting strategy in real time, and continuously learning. The ability to learn and adapt will allow AI agents to offer hyper-personalized customer care and campaigns. They will also be able to identify changes and problems before they arise and take preemptive actions.

This is not CRM with an AI twist. It’s a fundamental reimagining of how CRM operates. CRM is no longer a tool for humans to manage customer transactions; it is an intelligence that is studying the entire customer ecosystem and modifying its behavior based on what it learns, operating 24/7 to support revenue growth and customer success.

Agents become the interface

When AI agents can gather insights, take actions, and make decisions across systems, the way we interact with software will completely change. Traditional interfaces will either disappear or be relegated to back-end systems. In 2030, you might not log in to your CRM. Instead, you’ll supervise your AI agents updating systems, prioritizing next steps, recommending and optimizing next best actions, and guiding users toward unprecedented, personalized, efficient, and effective outcomes. AI agents will autonomously do more than manage relationships; they will enhance them and the experiences of all users.

In this next evolution of CRM, the challenges of the past, such as siloed, incomplete data and complex and underutilized systems, will quickly disappear. In their place will be a new form of intelligent customer relationship management that transcends any one app or system to deliver autonomous, dynamic, and transformative results.

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TGCOM24 Italia: Intelligenze Artificiali – Luci e Ombre: special guest Brian Solis

Watch here!

Oggi a “Intelligenze Artificiali – Luci e Ombre” un ospite d’eccezione: Brian Solis

Autore, speaker globale e Head of Global Innovation di ServiceNow, Brian Solis è una delle voci più influenti al mondo sull’impatto dell’innovazione nella società e nel business.

Con lui parleremo di intelligenza aumentata: perché l’IA non è solo tecnologia, ma visione, strategia e capacità di reimmaginare il futuro. Siamo solo al Giorno 1 di una rivoluzione che richiede un vero mindshift, soprattutto ai vertici delle organizzazioni.

Le luci? Nuovi modelli, creatività e potenziamento umano.
Le ombre? Rischi etici, perdita di senso, automatismi fuori controllo.

Sabato 7 giugno, ore 17.00 su TGCOM24
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Non perdete questa puntata!

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Today on “Intelligenze Artificiali – Luci e Ombre”: special guest Brian Solis

We are thrilled to welcome Brian Solis, Head of Global Innovation at ServiceNow, globally recognized thought leader, author, and speaker on digital transformation and innovation.

Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transcending its role as a mere automation tool to establish itself as a transformative force shaping every aspect of business and society. As Brian points out, we are only at Day 1 of this revolution — a shift that demands a radical mindshift, especially from leaders.

This episode explores how AI is not just about tools, but about reimagining strategy, customer experience, and value creation.
Lights: innovation, empowerment, new possibilities.
Shadows: ethical risks, blind automation, lack of vision.

Tune in Saturday June 7, at 5:00 PM on TGCOM24.

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ServiceNowAI Maturity Index: A 5-Stage Framework Toward Enterprise AI Transformation

Unlocking the Future of Enterprise AI: Insights from the ServiceNow AI Maturity Index

At ServiceNow Knowledge 2025 in Las Vegas, I had the privilege of joining Chief Innovation Officer Dave Wright, my boss, and Tom Smith, Editor in Chief, analyst, at Cloud Wars, to discuss a pivotal development in the AI landscape: the ServiceNow AI Maturity Index. This comprehensive framework, built on insights from over 4,500 global organizations, offers a structured approach to evaluating and advancing AI strategies within enterprises.

Accelerating Enterprise AI Success: Introducing the ServiceNow AI Maturity Index

At ServiceNow, we believe the future isn’t something we enter, it’s something we architect and influence. I recently had the opportunity to join Dave Wright and Tom Smith to explore insights from the AI Maturity Index. This isn’t just another framework. It’s a living blueprint, shaped by deep research across more than 4,500 global organizations, designed to help companies better understand where they are in their AI journey—and more importantly, how to move forward with intention and confidence.

What Is the AI Maturity Index?

The AI Maturity Index categorizes organizations into five distinct stages, providing a roadmap for companies to assess their current AI capabilities and identify areas for growth. This model emphasizes the importance of governance, adoption, and delivering tangible business value from AI investments

Why This Matters Now

AI is no longer a buzzword; it’s a business imperative. But too often, organizations dive in without a clear strategy or governance model. That’s where the AI Maturity Index comes in. It breaks down the path to AI excellence into five distinct stages, helping leaders identify where they stand and what steps to take to drive meaningful outcomes.

In Our Conversation, We Explored:

The origin of the Index and how this concept came to life. Spoiler alert: it born out of the need for a real, practical roadmap to help leaders operationalize AI.

Surprising insights: Many organizations report a dip in AI maturity as they scale. It’s not always a straight line. And understanding why is key to moving forward.

The future of governance and value: We unpacked why maturity isn’t just about using AI—it’s about aligning it with purpose, trust, and measurable impact.

If you’re leading digital or AI transformation, or just trying to make sense of where your organization fits in this rapidly shifting landscape, this conversation is for you.

Watch the video here – and discover where you are on the AI maturity curve.

Genesis and Goals of the AI Maturity Index (00:23)

The conversation takes place at the ServiceNow Knowledge 25 event in Las Vegas, featuring ServiceNow executives Wright and Solis. Wright explains the creation of the AI Maturity Index, driven by the need for a standard maturity index for customers deploying AI. The index was developed by interviewing 4,500 companies and identifying five criteria to rate maturity levels. The index provides a five-stage maturity model, allowing companies to plan and track their AI journey.

Industry and Geographic Insights (01:41)

Smith inquires if the surveyed companies are only ServiceNow customers or a broader range. Wright confirms the survey included ServiceNow customers and highlights the insights gained on differences based on industry and geography. The index offers a 3-D view of maturity progression, considering industry and geographic factors. Data governance and AI governance are critical; governance is often a barrier to AI advancement.

Counterintuitive Findings on AI Maturity (03:18)

Smith discusses the counterintuitive finding that AI maturity is down despite new technology and use cases. Wright attributes the decrease to the overwhelming number of new technologies and use cases, leading to a reevaluation of AI strategies. A CIO‘s comment at a meeting highlights the realization that AI’s potential is greater than initially understood. The discussion touches on the concept of a “control-delete moment,” where companies reconsider their AI strategies.

Challenges and Opportunities in AI Deployment (05:59)

Solis and Wright discuss the complexity and speed of AI evolution, leading to a need for better understanding and governance. Global CIO Rachel Sandel was at the event. Her company, Orica, is mentioned as an example of a company with advanced AI governance structures. Rather than relying on isolated IT setups, the discussion points to centralized AI deployment as key to scaling impact across the organization. Solis notes that only 30% of companies deploy AI use cases across multiple functions, reinforcing silos rather than breaking them down.

Governance and Measurement in AI (08:44)

Wright and Solis discuss the need for better governance and data governance in AI deployment. The conversation shifts to measurement, with traditional IT metrics being reevaluated in the context of AI. New metrics like avoided failures and automated processes are introduced, reflecting the evolving nature of AI measurement. The discussion touches on measuring the value extracted from AI investments.

People Considerations and Organizational Impact (11:07)

Smith raises the issue of people considerations and organizational impact in AI deployment. Solis emphasizes the importance of talent and skills in AI roadmaps, with a focus on talent and skills as key pillars. The conversation explores the potential for AI to create new roles and opportunities for human-machine collaboration. Wright talks about the need for organizations to have tough conversations about AI’s impact on jobs and workforce transformation.

Industry Leadership in AI (16:02)

Smith asks about the top three industries leading in AI maturity: technology, heavy manufacturing, and banking. Wright attributes the leadership to these industries’ early adoption of automation, which facilitated rapid AI adoption. The discussion includes the balance between automation and innovation, with a caution against automating to mediocrity. Solis adds that customer experience should be a key focus in AI deployment, using Amazon as an example of successful automation and customer obsession.

Platform Approach and Business Transformation (21:46)

Smith inquires about the benefits of a platform approach in AI deployment. Wright explains that a platform approach provides centralized control and visibility, essential for managing AI agents. The AI Control Tower concept is introduced, allowing for the management of agents from different vendors within a unified platform. Solis talks about how businesses must remodel for an era of AI, moving beyond digital transformation to true business transformation.

Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks (24:52)

Wright and Solis discuss dreaming bigger in AI deployment. There’s a need for organizations to think beyond cost savings and focus on value creation and business transformation. The discussion concludes with a call to action for organizations to explore new possibilities with AI and reimagine their business models.

 

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Keynote: Innovation Starts Where Certainty Ends

 The light bulb wasn’t the result of better candles.

Think about that.

Innovation rarely comes from perfecting the past, it comes from experimenting forward and eventually jumping to the next curve.

In this short video, I share the story of how true innovation requires moving beyond what works to chase what could be. It’s uncomfortable. It’s risky. But it’s necessary.

Iteration is safe, but finite.

Innovation is bold, but risky.

The future won’t come from enhancing what we already know. The future will come from exploring what we don’t.

Watch now…especially if you’re a leader, founder, or change-maker at the edge of what’s next.

Book Brian to speak at your next event!

 

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Keynote: Most businesses have no clue what’s about to hit them

 “Most businesses have no clue what’s about to hit them.”

Let’s explore the seismic shift unfolding now and over the next decade…where the old rules of business no longer apply. It’s time to challenge ourselves to stop waiting for direction and start shaping the future.

With AI accelerating change and organizations struggling to adapt, this is a wake-up call for anyone serious about staying relevant.

If you’re navigating uncertainty, this is for you…

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elEconomista.es: La IA debe potenciar nuestra creatividad y capacidad, no limitarla

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The financial daily elEconomista.es, hosted an interview, which just published today. The conversation explores how organizations can drive meaningful transformation through responsible AI, digital humanism, and human-centered innovation.“Corremos el riesgo de que la tecnología nos modele, en lugar de ser nosotros quienes configuremos cómo la utilizamos”“We run the risk of being shaped by technology, rather than us shaping how we use it.”

“El humanismo digital enfatiza que la tecnología debe servir a las personas, y no al revés”“Digital humanism emphasizes that technology should serve people, not the other way around.”

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CIO España: AI is a paradigm shift by requiring organizations to rethink the way they operate

Brian Solis on Stage at ServiceNow’s AI Summit, Madrid, SpainIrene Iglesias Álvarez, CIO España

En el marco de la celebración del evento #PutAItoWork 2025 de ServiceNow, entrevistamos al antropólogo digital y futurista, Brian Solis, para tomar el pulso a la tecnología que más clamores parece estar levantando en los últimos tiempos: la #IA.

El antropólogo digital y futurista ahonda en el porvenir de los negocios en un escenario copado por la inteligencia artificial e insta a los CIO a tomar la delantera. Así ha hablado para esta publicación.

Presentado en sociedad como antropólogo digital y futurista, el perfil de Brian Solis bien podría considerarse una rara avis dada su singularidad; sin embargo, en un escenario en el que parecen brotar evangelistas por doquier al abrigo de la digitalización, su figura también podría haberles pasado desapercibida. Precisamente por eso, aprovechando su parada en la capital en el marco de la celebración del evento Put AI to Work Summit 2025 de ServiceNow, CIO ESPAÑA se sentó el pasado mes de abril con el orador de renombre mundial para tomar el pulso a la tecnología que más clamores parece estar levantando en los últimos tiempos: la inteligencia artificial (IA).

El ejecutivo habla con razón de causa, parece sentar cátedra en una conversación que domina con agudeza. Y es que la experiencia es un grado, algo que queda patente al conocer su labor al frente de la compañía de desarrollo de software: el asesoramiento a líderes tecnológicos y empresariales a lo largo y ancho de la geografía sobre estrategias de innovación y transformación digital. Por si esto no fuera un trabajo a tiempo completo, Solis también atesora un palmarés de publicaciones que versan sobre el futuro de los negocios, el trabajo, la digitalización y la innovación en sectores como el comercio minorista, la salud, los servicios financieros, los seguros y el sector público.

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Interview: Transforming Leadership to Reshape the Future of Innovation

Photo by james chan on Unsplash

If there were ever a time for transformation and innovation, it’s now. But how do you transform leadership? Where do you start?

My friend Braden Kelley and I spent some time exploring how leadership must evolve in an era of AI, disruption, and accelerating change.

If you’re a business leader navigating uncertainty or driving transformation, these insights will challenge your assumptions and help reframe your role in building the future.

Key Takeaways:

 Mindset, imagination, and leadership are innovation’s greatest catalyst — not technology.

 Transformation begins with a “mindshift”: unlearning outdated models and embracing new ways of thinking.

 Leaders must move from reactive to proactive, becoming architects of the future, not just managers of the present.

 Culture is the soil for innovation — leaders must create environments of psychological safety, experimentation, and trust.

 Legacy thinking holds organizations back — especially in times of exponential technological advancement.

 Self-awareness and curiosity are gifts. The best leaders ask better questions, inspiring vision, curiosity, and action in their teams.

Please read and share your ideas and lessons!

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