AI can draft emails, analyze data and complete tasks at an incredible speed, but the hard work of talented leadership can’t be underestimated.
Leaders today continue to have a major influence on how companies will fare in the age of AI. Here, a new set of skills is defining what it takes to be successful at the helm.
We can see how AI is changing the dynamics of the typical C-Suite. With technology the dominant force, the role of the COO is growing in complexity and influence.
COO tenure in FTSE 100 has dropped 36% to 2.7 years, with 88% being first-time appointees.
The leaders who end up thriving in the AI era will be those who blend human depth with digital fluency. They will use AI to think with them, not for them.
From CEOs and product innovators to cultural icons and thought leaders, forward thinking executives have a marked influence on the AI solutions that reach the market and the way they are adopted and embraced by the public.
Here is our roundup of key executive developments and leadership movements this March to have on your radar.
Yann LeCun and Alex LeBrun at helm of AMI Labs to lead ambitious mission
Advanced Machine Intelligence Labs (AMI) has only just launched, but has already raised over a $1 billion in seed funding, in the largest seed deal in European history.
The confidence in AMI is closely tied to its leadership team, with Turing Prize winner Yann LeCun as co-founder and executive chairman. Prior to AMI, LeCun spent over 12 years at Meta, most recently as VP and Chief AI Scientist. The decision to create AMI is based on a belief that current LLMs are fundamentally limited.
Joining him as CEO is Alexandre LeBrun, a serial French entrepreneur who has been building AI products for over two decades. LeBrun will oversee the ambitious mission of AMI to create a new breed of AI systems that could change the face of industry.
Valerie Henderson leads next chapter of growth at Caylent as CEO
As an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner, Caylent is shaping the future where AI transforms industries responsibly and with excellence.
The company has now appointed industry veteran Valerie Henderson as its new CEO. Henderson served as Caylent’s President and Chief Revenue Officer since 2021, helping to grow company revenue more than five-fold during this tenure.
He will lead Caylent into its next era and advance the company’s vision of AI-first services that redesign how organizations operate, deliver, and compound value on AWS, focusing on accelerating AI-first services, agentic enablement, and cloud modernization.
Ness Digital Engineering names Sudip Singh as CEO
Ness Digital Engineering, a leading global provider of intelligent data and software engineering services, appointed Sudip Singh as its new CEO this March.
Singh is an accomplished executive who brings deep experience in technology, product and client service as Ness enters its next phase of growth. Ness’ strong engineering heritage and deep domain specialization have built platforms that run some of the world’s most critical businesses.
This foundation uniquely positions Ness to navigate the AI economy, where value comes from delivering business outcomes.
David Krauter named CEO at disruptor travel app Going
Going, the travel app for discovering flight deals, announced that its Board of Directors has appointed David Krauter as the company’s new CEO, effective from March 6th, 2026.
Prior to this, founders Scott Keyes and Brian Kidwell led Going for the past decade, bootstrapping the company to build one of the most trusted names in travel deals.
Krauter most recently served as CEO of Invaluable and Yaymaker. He also spent more than a decade at Tripadvisor, serving on its executive team and leading SmarterTravel. Now, Krauter will lead the next phase of growth for Going.
Bob Reisenweber joins Source Meridian as Director of Operations
Source Meridian announced that Bob Reisenweber was named its new Director of Operations, in a move that signals the company’s continued push to be at the forefront of AI as it expands its footprint in artificial intelligence automation, life sciences tech and data-driven development.
Reisenweber, a graduate of the Wharton School of Business, will help oversee operational strategy across the organization in his new role. Prior to joining Source Meridian, Reisenweber held executive roles within the tech and startup ecosystem.
Early in his career he worked in mergers and acquisitions at UBS before transitioning into VC and founding startups focused on emerging markets.
Rajat Mishra named one of the top AI execs of the year by The Software Report
Rajat Mishra was recently named one of the top AI execs of the year by The Software Report.
Under his leadership, Prezent AI was recognized as a top software and AI company, achieving a $400 million valuation in 2025 and launching an ambitious strategy to transform business communication and disrupt the legacy agency model for good.
ADvendio’s Julian Ahrends named one of the top 26 AI leaders to follow in 2026
Julian Ahrends is the CTO at ADvendio, leaders in omnichannel ad solutions. He has played a leading role with ADvendio’s latest product launch, the Revenue OS for Agentic Advertising. These specialized AI agents are designed to operate safely, collaboratively, and profitably.
He was recently highlighted as one of the top AI leaders to follow in 2026.
MyUser CEO Ibrahim Hasanov named a Mentor at Founder Institute
Ibrahim Hasanov is the Founder and CEO of MyUser. MyUser’s AI technology analyzes millions of potential leads then delivers highly personalized emails based on the prospects’ online profiles to help B2B companies drive sales and uncover new customers.
Hasanov was recently named a mentor at the Founder Institute, the world’s largest network of startup incubators, accelerators, and investors where he will actively support the next generation of AI founders and help to bring their ideas to fruition.
Fernando Gaspar Barros announces global tour for Brands Like Bands
There are very few things having a bigger impact on company culture than AI. Fernando Gaspar Barros is on a mission to transform how companies approach corporate culture and engagement. As the Founder of Brands Like Bands, he is redefining workplace branding by placing people center stage and positioning culture as a strategic business asset.
This March, he announced details of the 2026 global tour of the Brands Like Bands festival, which will head across two continents, seven countries, and eight cities with teams from brands including BNP Paribas, Siemens and iCapital.
Horasis, a global think tank headquartered in Zurich, named the Brands like Bands festival one of 10 global projects to watch in 2026.
Prezent AI names Tony Colon new Senior Executive Board Member
Tony Colon has joined Prezent AI’s Senior Executive Board to advance global enterprise adoption and customer-centric AI innovation. Colon is a seasoned technology executive with a two-decade track record firmly rooted in the mechanics of enterprise tech and digital transformation.
He currently serves as Chief Customer Officer at Veeam Software. Colon has built and scaled multiple high-growth organizations and solutions throughout his career, including key leadership roles at Cisco, where he led Customer & Partner Experience Engineering, and Salesforce, where he managed Success, Cloud Product Management and Innovation.
India’s youngest AI entrepreneur Bob Chopra answers questions on the future of education
At just 9 years old, Bob Chopra – often referenced as India’s youngest AI entrepreneur – stepped into conversations that most adults only dream of by answering questions on the future of EdTech. What does the emergence of this promising entrepreneur mean for the future of the industry? For one, we should expect to see more and more younger entrepreneurs.
The company he’s building, IvySchool.ai, is connecting students with expert instructors from MIT, Harvard, Stanford and Wharton.
