For executives to truly drive AI adoption, simply using the tools isn't enough. They must model three key behaviors: publicly setting a clear vision for AI's role, actively participating in company-wide learning initiatives like hackathons, and empowering employees with the autonomy to experiment.

Cathie Wood asserts that successful AI adoption isn't about bottom-up experimentation; it requires a top-down, CEO-led restructuring of the entire enterprise. Delegating AI strategy to the CTO or letting teams simply "experiment" will lead to failure.

AI is a 'hands-on revolution,' not a technological shift like the cloud that can be delegated to an IT department. To lead effectively, executives (including non-technical ones) must personally use AI tools. This direct experience is essential for understanding AI's potential and guiding teams through transformation.

While empowering employees to experiment with AI is crucial, Snowflake found it's ineffective without an executive mandate. If the CEO doesn't frame AI as a top strategic initiative, employees will treat it as optional, hindering real adoption. Success requires combining top-down leadership with bottom-up innovation.

Simply instructing engineers to "build AI" is ineffective. Leaders must develop hands-on proficiency with no-code tools to understand AI's capabilities and limitations. This direct experience provides the necessary context to guide technical teams, make bolder decisions, and avoid being misled.

According to Techstars' CEO David Cohen, standout AI companies are defined by their leadership. The CEO must personally embody an "AI-first" mindset, constantly thinking about leverage and efficiency from day one. It's not enough to simply lead a team of engineers who understand AI; the strategic vision must originate from the top.

A Gallup workplace survey reveals a stark disparity in AI usage. Leaders are adopting AI at a much higher rate than their employees, indicating that the push for integration is coming from the top while frontline workers are lagging significantly in adoption.

The key to driving AI adoption at Block was leadership by example. CEO Jack Dorsey and CTO Danji Prasana use their internal AI tool, Goose, daily. They argue this hands-on approach provides more insight into organizational workflow changes than any top-down mandate or analysis of industry reports.

CEOs who merely issue an "adopt AI" mandate and delegate it down the hierarchy set teams up for failure. Leaders must actively participate in hackathons and create "play space" for experimentation to demystify AI and drive genuine adoption from the top down, avoiding what's called the "delegation trap."