AI is enhancing collaboration between CIOs and CEOs
AI is changing how companies operate at every level, including who sits at the decision-making table. One very noticeable shift happening right now: CEOs are working more closely than ever with CIOs. According to the 2025 Technology Leaders Survey by IDC and Expereo, 31% of U.S. technology leaders say their CEOs are engaging more directly with CIOs than they did a year ago. That number is only going to grow.
Why is this happening? Because AI is becoming critical to business results. CEOs see that. They want fast, scalable transformation. They want tighter operations, better output, and smarter use of data. AI delivers on that, but only if it’s implemented right. That’s where CIOs come in. They’re no longer on the sidelines managing systems, they’re steering core operational changes with AI at the center.
This close alignment allows both the CEO and CIO to get ahead of competitors. AI strategy, governance, implementation, it’s not optional work anymore. Business leaders serious about long-term growth realize they need hands-on involvement in how AI takes shape in their organization.
Martina Longo, Research Manager at IDC, put it clearly: CEOs and boards now understand that AI strengthens business resilience and improves their competitive edge. When senior leadership actively participates, execution speeds up. That’s how companies create lasting advantage, not by waiting until the tech is mature, but by being out front and working side-by-side now.
CIOs are gaining board-level influence through AI leadership
CIOs today are no longer just managing infrastructure, they’re shaping the future of the business. AI has elevated the CIO role into boardrooms where strategic business decisions are made. This isn’t just perception, it’s backed by data. IDC’s survey shows that 79% of tech leaders say the focus on AI has raised their board-level visibility. And 76% say they’re confident their teams can directly drive growth and efficiency through well-executed tech strategies.
AI is pushing CIOs into more strategic territory because it touches almost everything, from how you engage customers to how fast your teams operate. Boards want results they can measure. So when a CIO shows how AI impacts revenue, speeds up delivery, or improves customer outcomes, they’re leading. That kind of leadership gets recognized.
More importantly, C-suites need leaders who can speak both technology and business. CIOs who understand AI’s impact on actual business performance, who can connect algorithms to outcomes, are becoming essential to company growth plans. That’s what smart boards are prioritizing now.
As Martina Longo explained, the CIO’s role is now intertwined with growth strategy itself. Organizations want more than digital modernization, they want the CIO to drive revenue and innovation. That shift isn’t theoretical; it’s showing up in how boards interact with their technology executives and in how investment decisions get made.
In simple terms: if you’re a CIO leading AI initiatives, and you’re not already working closely with your CEO and board, make it happen. The opportunity is there, and if you lead it right, you have more influence than ever.
AI and data analytics are top investment priorities for large enterprises
Enterprise leaders aren’t just curious about AI anymore, they’re committing serious budgets to it. Data from IDC’s 2025 Technology Leaders Survey confirms this: 37% of respondents say AI and analytics are among their top priorities for investment over the next year. These areas trail just behind networking (43%) and cybersecurity (38%), which underscores AI’s movement from emergent technology to foundational capability.
Why now? Because AI and analytics are directly tied to performance. Companies are investing not only in tools, but in outcomes, automation, speed, intelligence, and decision-making accuracy. When done right, AI gives leadership better insights, faster reactions to market demands, and more efficient workflows. That has real impact on customer experience, product development, and operational costs.
Boards and executive teams are no longer treating AI as experimental. It’s embedded in objectives, from optimizing supply chains to improving sales pipelines. The clarity is there: organizations that underinvest in AI risk falling behind on multiple fronts.
So, if you’re leading an enterprise, the takeaway is straightforward. AI investment isn’t something to delay until next quarter. It needs to be built into your current roadmap. The technology is ready. Use cases are proving useful. What’s needed now is executive focus to align strategy, funding, and implementation.
The CIO role is expanding into business strategy and operations
CIOs are evolving into business leaders, not just technology leaders. This isn’t about titles; it’s about scale and responsibility. According to IDC, 48% of tech leaders believe their role will grow even more central to business growth in the years ahead. That includes overseeing IT modernization, sure, but also driving revenue and delivering measurable return on technology investments.
Today, leading CIOs are actively shaping strategy, not waiting to be handed requirements. That shift is fueled by AI’s cross-functional potential. AI touches every department, sales, operations, customer service, product, and that means CIOs are now working across historically siloed teams.
Dan Carpenter from Amplitude explained it well. As CIO and SVP of GTM Strategy and Operations, his role has expanded into a hybrid, combining operational oversight, technology enablement, and leadership of key go-to-market functions. He’s driving both internal productivity and customer-facing outcomes by aligning technology choices with company-level execution.
For companies looking to scale effectively, the CIO’s evolving position is essential. You need someone who can oversee system architecture and API design while also making decisions that impact growth strategy, unit economics, and customer experience. The alignment between IT and business isn’t a buzzword anymore, it’s operational necessity.
If you’re on the executive team, support your CIO in doing more than just running backend systems. Bring them in when setting priorities and identifying opportunities. The most effective companies are the ones where the CIO has a direct hand in not just delivering the technology but in leading the impact.
The creation of a chief AI officer (CAIO) role remains uncommon
Last year, a number of U.S. tech leaders expected the Chief AI Officer (CAIO) role to become standard. But predictions haven’t matched the pace of adoption. IDC’s 2025 Technology Leaders Survey found that 86% of U.S. companies still haven’t appointed a CAIO. The reason is less about resistance and more about structural logic. Most enterprises are choosing to assign AI responsibilities to existing technology leaders, CIOs, CTOs, or CISOs.
This isn’t just a matter of headcount. It’s about integration. Companies are seeing that having AI governed within existing leadership frameworks translates to tighter execution. The need for coordination between data strategy, systems architecture, and business operations is high. Splitting leadership roles around AI can fragment accountability, dilute focus, and introduce redundant workflows. That’s not productive when AI success depends heavily on unified data strategies and clear governance.
There are exceptions. Nokia, for instance, appointed Pallavi Mahajan as its Chief Technology and AI Officer and created new support teams to extend AI capabilities organization-wide. For a tech-centric firm with AI as a core focus, that structure may work. But for most enterprises, the priority right now is practicality, centralized leadership and smoother execution over role expansion.
Dan Carpenter, CIO and SVP at Amplitude, was candid on this point. He sees AI as integral to the CIO’s mandate and cautions against breaking it out into a standalone executive job. According to Carpenter, doing so risks overlapping team efforts and could create friction at the data architecture level. Splintered ownership reduces precision in deployment and slows results.
For senior leaders thinking about AI governance: It’s not the title that matters. It’s clarity in ownership, speed of delivery, and effectiveness in execution. If your CIO is already driving strong progress across operations, there may be no need to carve out a separate role.
AI leadership is becoming an entrenched executive function
Regardless of whether companies appoint a Chief AI Officer, the core responsibilities of that role, developing AI strategy, managing governance, and leading implementation, are here to stay. AI is no longer a specialized or temporary initiative. It’s now embedded in how companies compete, serve customers, and grow.
Leaders need to understand this. AI strategy isn’t something to delegate to isolated teams or assign as secondary responsibility. Whether handled through the CIO or a new role, executive ownership over AI must be continual and integrated. It involves linking data infrastructure, regulatory standards, business priorities, and measurable outcomes. This scope requires active engagement from the top.
Martina Longo from IDC calls this shift permanent. She says AI leadership, regardless of how companies assign the title, is now a fixture of the modern executive landscape. That’s accurate. It aligns with what we’re seeing on the ground: companies centralizing AI decision-making and folding it into senior leadership.
This isn’t just about managing tools or platforms. It’s about talent strategy, cost savings, product velocity, go-to-market acceleration, executive-level impact across the board.
If you’re in the C-suite, your approach to AI leadership today will define how quickly your organization adapts, scales, and innovates tomorrow. It’s not whether you build a new title. It’s whether you embed AI deeply enough into your leadership model to execute at enterprise speed.
Key executive takeaways
- AI is aligning CEOs and CIOs through shared strategy: CEOs are now working more closely with CIOs to fast-track AI initiatives, recognizing AI as essential to operational efficiency and competitive positioning. Leaders should enable direct CIO-CEO alignment to accelerate digital transformation.
- CIO visibility is growing at the board level: As AI becomes integral to business strategy, CIOs are gaining greater board influence, with 79% reporting elevated visibility. Leaders should ensure CIOs have a seat at the strategic table to drive high-impact AI-led outcomes.
- Enterprise AI investment is a top-four priority: 37% of large enterprises are prioritizing AI and data analytics in the coming year, just behind cybersecurity and networking. Executives should allocate funding to AI initiatives that can deliver fast, measurable results across business units.
- The CIO role now includes business operations and revenue impact: CIOs are moving beyond tech leadership to drive strategy, process, and go-to-market execution. Organizations should empower CIOs to take cross-functional roles that directly connect technology with business growth.
- Most organizations are consolidating AI leadership under existing roles: Despite early predictions, 86% of U.S. firms have not appointed Chief AI Officers, opting instead to leverage CIOs or CTOs. Leaders should focus on actionable AI outcomes rather than titles, avoiding duplication of teams or effort.
- AI leadership is now a permanent executive function: Whether through a CAIO or CIO, AI governance, strategy, and implementation are here to stay and must be tied to core business goals. Executives should formalize AI leadership responsibilities and embed them into enterprise operating models.
