As some employees adopt AI, while others resist it, AI will undoubtedly be a part of a company fabric no matter what scale of AI you’re deploying and it will come in various forms, the adoption of AI Agents, AI Models, and/or embedded AI systems (like Microsofts co-pilot, Salesforce, Snowflake, etc).
The goal of AI is to amplify and accelerate what we do best in order to do MORE with the SAME (not less).
What considerations and assumptions do you need to know NOW to achieve your ROI, establish a regenerative growth model, and drive “Catalytic commerce” – where AI as an enabler that creates compounding value generation vs. taking a one-time slingshot approach with barely any returns.
Geared for Non-Technologists who want to make sense of the AI world and what it entails, this conversation gets past the ‘Art of the Possible’ and into the ‘World of the Practical’. A majority of us aren’t technologist, so its important to understand what all this means today, for the future, and how to best be prepare for it personally and professionally. It also discusses the hype, the marketing, what’s fact vs. fiction, and how to tell the difference.
While many companies strive to be innovative, nearly 76% of all innovation projects fail and nearly 92% fall short of expected results. This conversation focuses on how to avoid the pitfalls and quicksand of innovation and why BUSINESS VALUE is not the metric of choice when choosing your innovation projects.
It also discusses, how to make sense of the new world of CXO’s where the boundaries of technology have expanded past the CIO. How should one think through the division of labor, motivating a workforce that can be apprehensive or resistant towards the latest advents of today, and how to forecast innovation projects.
Many organizations are focused on being ‘Data Centric’, ‘Data Driven’, and monetizing on data because it’s the new enterprise oil. However, most organizations fail to make the pivot, with nearly 73% of organizations falling short of what they set out to accomplish with their data strategy. This discussion will go into all the reasons ‘Why’, and what we can do to course correct, evangelize, and create a movement that will build a last legacy with data. Everyone can be data-centric without removing the creativity, critical thinking, and experience we bring to the table.
With the advent of AI and with nearly 86% of organizations investing in AI-based capabilities, it has been proven that AI is not a fad or a trend that will go away. However, what we can’t measure are the economic and moral impacts AI will have on our society.
Like parents, who are the caretakers of children, their responsibilities are to teach children right from wrong and to embed a moral compass in each of us. Similarly, WE as humans are the caretakers of AI, also teaching it right from wrong, yet we’re at a crossroads with a moral compass because of the biases, poor practices, falsification, and misinformation we’re helping it propagate. I will share a personal story of how ‘fake news’ almost ruined my 20+ career and how I caught it, and how to embed safer and responsible practices for AI.
Change is hard. Disruption is hard. With the pace of change being the fastest its ever been, leaders have an unfair advantage in today’s world. Constantly distracted by messages and emails, combined with the pressures of motivating teams, aligning strategic priorities, balancing workloads, and all while innovating, leaders are not set up to succeed, UNLESS THEY GO ROGUE. This discussion is all about finding the rogue in us.
The leader who focuses on not being busy, but being productive. The leader who lets go of the need to respond in exchange for the need to reflect. Leaders who in spite of resistance can see beyond the trees and around the corner, and put forth passion and relentless pursuit to achieve what needs to be accomplished, and all while staying sane. This discussion is about managing our energy so we can show up in the right way, at the right time, and for the right people to drive change and create outcomes.
Sol Rashidi is a pioneering leader at the intersection of data, AI, and business transformation. With a career spanning over two decades, she has held senior executive roles as Chief Data & Analytics Officer and Chief AI Officer across multiple Fortune 100 companies, driving large-scale digital transformations that delivered measurable business value. Sol played a critical role in launching IBM Watson, one of the most ambitious AI initiatives of its time, and today she continues to shape the future of enterprise AI adoption.
She holds eight patents in the field of data and technology, underscoring her track record of innovation. Known for her pragmatic approach, Sol bridges the gap between strategy and execution, helping organizations identify high-ROI use cases, build scalable governance models, and design future-ready operating structures. She is a sought-after advisor to boards, executives, and investors looking to unlock the real business potential of AI while avoiding hype-driven pitfalls.
A frequent keynote speaker and educator, Sol has inspired audiences worldwide with her ability to translate complex technology into accessible, actionable insights. Passionate about building diverse, future-ready workforces, she also mentors the next generation of leaders. With a career built on both visionary thinking and practical execution, Sol Rashidi helps organizations harness AI not just as a tool, but as a transformative force for long-term growth and resilience.
With a pivotal role in launching IBM’s Watson in 2011, a groundbreaking application of Artificial Intelligence on a global scale, Sol Rashidi has consistently been a trailblazer in the ideation, conceptualization, design, and development of Data & AI applications. Boasting over three dozen large-scale implementations and a remarkable record, Sol holds eight granted patents, with 21 filed, and has garnered numerous prestigious awards, including being recognized as one of the “Top 100 AI People” in 2023.
Sol Rashidi’s impact is evident in her presence on the “Global 100 Power List” for consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023), recognition as one of the “Top 20 CDOs Globally” in 2022, and being named “Chief Analytics Officer of the Year” in 2022. Further, she earned the “Isomer Innovators of the Year” award for three consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023) and has been acknowledged as one of the “Top 100 Innovators in Data & Analytics” from 2020 to 2023. Adding to her achievements, Sol was listed among the “Top 100 Women in Business” in 2022.
Her other accolades include: “Top 75 Innovators of 2023,” “Top 65 Most Influential Women in 2023,” and earning the title of “Forbes AI Maverick of the 21st Century” in 2022. Additionally, she has been honored with the “Top 10 Global Women in AI & Data” award in 2023, the “Top AI 100 Award” in 2023, and inclusion in the “50 Most Powerful Women in Tech” in 2022.
Throughout her career, Sol Rashidi has held significant C-Suite positions in Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies, including roles such as Chief Analytics Officer at Estee Lauder, Chief Data & Analytics Officer at Merck Pharmaceuticals, EVP and Chief Data Officer at Sony Music, Chief Data & AI Officer at Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, and Senior Partner leading the Digital & Innovation Practice at Ernst & Young. Her impactful tenure at IBM as Partner leading Watson Go-To-Market further solidifies her expertise in the field.
Now serving as an advisor, consultant, and fractional CDO & CAIO, Sol is dedicated to assisting companies in advancing their business objectives. As a global keynote speaker, she leverages her technical expertise and storytelling abilities to articulate the business value of data, AI, and technology.
Sol Rashidi Amazon bestselling book, Your AI Survival Guide: Scraped Knees, Bruised Elbows, and Lessons Learned from Real-World AI Deployments, is made for business leaders without a technology background. Sol’s hallmark is simplifying the complex and helping leaders realize that innovation doesn’t always require cutting-edge solutions but often involves cutting through the noise.
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A 16 minute and 18 second TEDx talk where Sol Rashidi breaks down how AI affects human thinking, decision-making, and cognitive resilience—and what we must do to stay sharp.
Sol Rashidi explores a provocative question: as AI becomes more accessible and powerful, are we unintentionally allowing our own cognitive abilities to weaken? She begins by illustrating how convenience—autocorrect, navigation apps, automated decisions—quietly erodes skills we once practiced daily. Sol argues that while AI enhances productivity, it can also create “mental rust” when we stop engaging our own reasoning, creativity, and intuition.
She walks through examples from her years in AI leadership, showing where humans tend to over-rely on tools without understanding their limitations. Sol explains that AI, for all its capability, is still pattern-based prediction—not judgment, not ethics, not lived experience. When humans outsource too many decisions to technology, they risk losing the very mental agility required to use AI responsibly.
Midway through the talk, she highlights the importance of cognitive friction—those moments of struggle, questioning, and problem-solving that strengthen the brain. Sol encourages audiences not to avoid these moments but to lean into them, treating them as mental exercise rather than inconvenience. She also debunks the myth that AI will replace the need for human thinking, stressing that the future belongs to people who combine machine intelligence with human nuance.
Sol ends with a challenge: embrace AI, but don’t surrender your mind to it. Use discomfort as a tool, practice critical thinking intentionally, and stay engaged in the process of learning. AI should sharpen us, not dull us—and whether it does depends on how we choose to interact with it.
03:05 How convenience tech creates subtle “mental rust”
06:22 Why AI’s strengths still depend on human judgment
09:40 The value of cognitive friction and productive struggle
12:28 How over-reliance on automation erodes decision-making
An 18 minute and 6 second keynote where Sol Rashidi delivers a sharp, practical breakdown of AI, data strategy, and the leadership decisions shaping the next era of business.
In this 18:06 keynote for Sotheby’s, Sol Rashidi delivers a fast, insightful deep dive into how organizations can navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of AI, data, and digital transformation. She opens by cutting through the hype, explaining that AI success isn’t about having the fanciest models—it’s about having clarity of purpose, clean data foundations, and leaders who know how to make the right calls at the right moments.
Sol lays out the common pitfalls she sees inside organizations: misaligned expectations, poor data hygiene, and the gap between excitement and execution. She stresses that AI is not magic—it’s math, infrastructure, and disciplined decision-making. Throughout the keynote, she highlights the importance of building systems that are both human-centered and technologically sound, reminding leaders that AI adoption fails when people don’t trust it, understand it, or know how to use it.
She also digs into the strategic frameworks she’s used across multiple Fortune 100 roles: identifying high-value use cases, mapping decision flows, designing for measurable outcomes, and creating a culture where experimentation is safe and expected. Sol illustrates these principles with real-world examples from industries undergoing rapid reinvention, showing how clear governance and intentional design turn AI from a buzzword into a competitive advantage.
The keynote closes with a rallying message: the organizations that win in the next decade will be the ones that marry technical sophistication with human intuition—leaders who stay curious, decisive, and unafraid to rethink how value gets created.
03:10 Why data quality and clear purpose determine AI success
06:22 Common organizational pitfalls slowing adoption
09:40 Frameworks for identifying high-value AI use cases
13:05 How trust, culture, and human behavior shape AI adoption
16:22 The leadership mindset needed for the next era of business
A: Workshops can be technical; keynotes focus on strategy.
A: Business goals and current tech stack summary for tailored sessions.
A: Standard stage AV; virtual requires screen-share and high-quality audio.
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