What's a chief AI officer?

There’s a new seat available at the C-suite table; It's the chief AI officer (CAIO). And according to executive search and leadership advisory firm Heidrick & Struggles, you’ll get paid over US$1 million on average to do it.

With the landscape of artificial intelligence (AI) constantly evolving and changing, many companies are considering bringing on a CAIO to manage the technical aspects of AI and come up with a strategy to leverage this advanced tech in a way that aligns with the company’s overall goals.

Many CEOs still aren’t sure how to adopt, invest in or effectively use AI, so that’s where a CAIO could come in. Meanwhile, other businesses are uncertain what that role should entail and whether it’s even necessary. In fact, a recent Accenture survey of 3,400 C-suite execs found that only 27% said their companies were ready to scale up with generative AI.

But even for the companies that are ready, it’s been difficult for recruiters and companies to find someone to fit the bill for this new executive title because of the specifics of the role. It requires more than just a computer science background – a CAIO would need to be familiar not only with AI tech but also have experience in executive leadership and have knowledge beyond the techy parts (for example, on the ethical use of AI).

Greg Selker, a managing director at executive recruitment firm Stanton Chase, told Business Insider, "They can't be a data scientist who spends their time writing algorithms; the chief AI officer is more going to be involved in creating the applications that are going to be leveraging the LLM (Large Language Model)." 

Justin Kinsey, the president of recruiting firm SBT Industries said that the role should be "a blend of technical expertise, strategic vision and executive-level leadership."