Jerry Petersen
Chief artificial intelligence officers ought to report not to another C-suite peer like the chief information officer but directly to an organization’s senior leadership, according to Karen Dahut, the CEO of Google Public Sector.
CAIOs Should Report to Senior Organization Leaders
Dahut, a 2024 Wash100 winner, made the remarks in a recent interview with Nextgov/FCW, where she explained that because the CAIO’s work involves handling technology that can transform an organization’s mission, reporting to top leaders is necessary.
“A CIO is about providing broad-based technology at a reasonable cost that’s secure, and a CAIO is all about experimenting with new technologies and trying new things to affect the mission,” Dahut said.
Organizations Need Technology Governance
The chief executive also believes technology governance should be established at the level of an organization’s leadership.
“I think that what they do need is somebody that is driving the governance, the selection of the technologies, the way they’re going to approach it, and then let it flourish inside the organization,” Dahut said.
