Can “Artificial CEOs” Outperform Human CEOs?

How equipped are you to handle the earth-shattering ramifications of the generative AI revolution?

If you’re like most CEOs you’re not only assessing the impact of employee jobs disappearing—you’re worried your own position might be on the line.

A staggering 74% of CEOs fear they risk losing their job within two years if they fail to deliver measurable AI-driven business gains. So says a new study “Global AI Confessions Report: CEO Edition” conducted by The Harris Poll for AI platform, Dataiku.

And many top executives admit they’re falling behind the competition. In the same survey 54% of CEOs say that a rival company has already deployed a superior AI strategy.

Dataiku co-founder and CEO Florian Douetteau says, “For CEOs today, every AI decision feels like a high-stakes gamble that can drive competitive dominance or lead to costly consequences.”

If that’s not enough to make CEOs nervous, consider the scary headline of an article in the Harvard Business Review by leading researchers from the University of Cambridge: “AI Can (Mostly) Outperform Human CEOs.”

In a large-scale, real-world experiment they compared university students, senior bank executives and GPT-4o in a gamified simulation designed to replicate the kinds of decision-making challenges CEOs face. They used words like “surprising,” “provocative,” “remarkable,” and “impressive” to describe AI’s performance and said it consistently outperformed top human participants on nearly every metric.

While AI struggled with black swan events it proved able to rapidly learn and iterate and “held its own” against the best and brightest human participants. Humans, though, did better handling unpredictable socks.

The greatest strength of “Artificial CEOs” is in augmenting the decision-making process by automating data-heavy analyses and modeling complex scenarios allowing human leaders to focus on strategic judgment, empathy, and ethical decision-making—areas where humans excel.

The conclusion of the university researchers is that the real risk to human CEOs lies in “clinging to the illusion that we alone will hold the reins in the future.” They write, “The future of leadership is hybrid—where AI complements human CEOs focus on vision, values, and long-term sustainability. The CEOs who thrive will be those who master this synergy, leveraging AI not as a rival but as a partner in decision-making.”

What can leaders do to be among those who thrive?

Take responsibility 

While it’s common for leaders to rely on the expertise of their tech executives for tech-related transitions a different mindset is now required. They must become AI literate. Bryan Ackermann, head of AI strategy and transformation at Korn Ferry, says, “This is a dangerous one to delegate. These are profound leadership decisions.”

CEOs should stretch themselves and habitually embrace the discomfort they might feel keeping up with rapid tech advances. You can schedule monthly briefings with chief technology officers or AI specialists to stay informed about emerging tools and their business applications.

Change culture 

A new report from PwC and the World Economic Forum, Leveraging generative AI for job augmentation and workforce productivity, points out that we will all spend the rest of our careers in the AI era and that the skills in occupations most able to use AI are changing 25% faster than in other occupations.

Leaders, therefore, the report says, need to shake up the corporate culture: “It’s important to build people’s ability and desire to make the most of AI by, for example, creating a culture of curiosity, encouraging experimentation, rewarding innovation, demonstrating that AI can make work more enjoyable and rewarding, and modelling the right behaviors from the top.”

Build a team 

Building a team of AI experts can help CEOs stay ahead of the curve. This includes hiring data scientists, AI researchers, and other specialists who can drive AI initiatives within the organization. Establish a cross-functional AI task force to pilot projects with clear KPIs tied to revenue, efficiency or customer satisfaction.

Be ethical 

Ensure that AI is implemented ethically and responsibly. This involves setting up governance frameworks to oversee AI usage and addressing potential biases in AI algorithms. Appoint a chief AI ethics officer or form an ethics committee to ensure compliance with regulations. Transparency and accountability will buildtrust with stakeholders and mitigate risks associated with AI misuse.

Final thoughts 

The generative AI revolution is not a distant threat—it’s here, and it’s reshaping industries at an unprecedented pace. For CEOs, AI strategy is no longer a peripheral concern; it’s the defining factor in corporate survival and success. Those who act decisively, embracing AI as a partner rather than a rival, will secure their leadership roles and position their organizations as industry pioneers. Conversely, hesitation or resistance risks obsolescence in a world where adaptability is paramount.

The path forward demands courage, curiosity, and a commitment to hybrid leadership. CEOs must invest in their own AI literacy, cultivate a culture of innovation, build expert teams, and uphold ethical standards. Beyond these steps, they must also anticipate the societal implications of AI, from workforce reskilling to addressing economic disparities driven by automation. By leading with vision and leveraging AI’s capabilities, CEOs can not only navigate this revolution but also shape a future where technology and humanity coexist in harmony. The time to act is now—your legacy as a leader depends on it.

Written by Jason Richmond.
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