Most AI initiatives begin with “Where can we use AI?”—before establishing what the organization wants to achieve, who is involved, and which constraints matter. Drawing on technology leadership experience and original research, this talk explores how that sequence can create complexity, dependencies, and lock-in even when the technology works successfully. Each successful fix can make the next change harder, gradually narrowing the organization’s options. Attendees will leave with a practical framework for evaluating AI initiatives by starting with people, context, and intended business outcomes, while considering the future choices their decisions may close off.
Fede Rodrigo is a Chief Information Officer (CIO) with more than 15 years of IT leadership experience across the US, Europe, and Latin America. He is the author of How to Become CIO and Succeed and holds an MBA from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Computer Science degree from the Catholic University of Uruguay. His recent research on technological dependencies and lock-in informs his upcoming TEDx talk, “Technology Is Never the Starting Point.”
