Article

Eystein Thanisch

In Part I of this two-part Amplify series on AI evaluation, we explore the impetus toward AI accountability that arises from tackling real problems in real-world settings. Understanding how AI can contribute, at what cost, and with what nth order effects in a given context requires rigorous socio-technical systems thinking.

Article

Rosie Nance, Marcus Evans, Lisa Fitzgerald, Lily Hands

As Marcus Evans, Rosie Nance, Lisa Fitzgerald, and Lily Hands explore, AI explainability is a legal requirement as well as a scientific challenge. Despite the EU and UK’s differing approaches in other aspects of AI regulation, both the EU and UK GDPR continue to uphold individuals’ right to an explanation of automated or semiautomated decisions that impact them significantly. The EU AI Act also provides a right to an explanation for individuals or organizations.

Article

Kitty Yeung

Kitty Yeung urges us to elevate our thinking and consider what we are trying to achieve — via AI or otherwise. She argues that the fashion industry has long failed to appreciate the imaginative journeys consumers are taking, journeys that weave together self, situations, social circles, and eclectic wearables. Destructive practices like fast fashion represent flawed attempts to address human complexity with incomplete information, cumbersome supply chains, and a narrow anthropology that undervalues consumers’ creative agency.

Article

Joseph Farrington

Joseph Farrington emphasizes the importance of evaluating AI systems against their end goals. In healthcare, where developing and deploying AI models is especially challenging, he argues for first modeling the business context and processes the AI will interact with — before moving ahead with development or deployment. This approach can be used to assess, in advance, whether a plausible AI model will provide the intended benefit. It can also be used to run alternative scenarios to identify what else might need to change for the AI to really work or what else might work better if the AI were in place.

Article

Joseph Byrum

Joseph Byrum introduces a framework to help organizations plan rationally and prudently for AI adoption. One element is defining performance thresholds beyond which emerging technologies become economically viable. Another is assessing how AI and humans should interact across different business functions: some tasks can be commoditized and handled by AI, while others remain critical differentiators under human responsibility, with hybrid possibilities in between.

Article

Daniel Flatt

Daniel Flatt contends that an evaluation framework that promotes accuracy and objectivity is a commercial necessity. He points to B2B publishing as a sector of particular note: an industry built on credibility and accountability that AI could undermine, even as it offers opportunities to accelerate time to output. In response, new tools for detecting inaccuracy and bias in AI-generated copy are emerging, alongside collaborations across the publishing workflow and the wider industry.

Advisor

Curt Hall

This Advisor series explores the emergence of on-orbit data centers — space-based platforms that enable real-time, AI-powered data processing and analysis directly in orbit. Here in Part I, we examine the enabling technologies, key benefits, and transformative potential of these systems for autonomous space operations, Earth observation, defense, manufacturing, and beyond.

Advisor

Siah Hwee Ang

Most organizations underutilize their boards, treating directors primarily as oversight agents rather than strategic partners. This Advisor recommends a shift toward deeper, ongoing engagement between directors and management to unlock the full value of board expertise. By institutionalizing both hard and soft skills — through regular interaction, strategic involvement, and better succession planning — organizations can ensure board knowledge becomes a lasting asset, not a transient one.

Advisor

Dan Salas, Caroline Hernandez

As biodiversity loss intensifies, companies face mounting pressure to integrate nature positive actions into their sustainability strategies. This Advisor explores how businesses can operationalize these efforts by leveraging established tools and frameworks to assess nature-related risks and opportunities. It also highlights the importance of third-party verification to avoid greenwashing and ensure meaningful outcomes.

Advisor

Michal Baczyk

This Advisor explores the accelerating convergence of academic research and industry investment in quantum algorithms, marking a shift from theoretical promise to practical application. From simulating molecules in drug discovery to optimizing logistics and advancing financial modeling, quantum algorithms are beginning to deliver domain-specific value. As industries invest in identifying where quantum advantage matters most, the focus is turning to integrating these tools into real-world workflows and architectures.

Advisor

Shuhui Wang, Hirindu Kawshala

This Advisor explores how CEO overconfidence influences firm complexity, drawing on analysis of over 14,000 earnings call transcripts. While confident leaders may aim to streamline operations, the findings show a 3.1% reduction in complexity among firms led by overconfident CEOs — raising concerns about oversimplification. Boards and investors should carefully evaluate whether reduced complexity reflects strategic clarity or signals deeper organizational blind spots.

Advisor

Margaret Waldock, Jonathan Wagar, David Jeffrey Ringer

This Advisor explores how campuses and peri-urban communities can become powerful agents of climate action by implementing decarbonization strategies within a broader framework developed by Duke Farms. By integrating emissions reductions with biodiversity and carbon-sequestration goals, it highlights scalable, place-based solutions that address the urgent need for local action in the face of global environmental threats.

Advisor

Curt Hall

This Advisor explores how cybersecurity vendors are harnessing AI to detect and counter increasingly sophisticated deepfakes. It examines emerging capabilities such as multimodal detection engines, real-time threat mitigation, forensic analysis, and behavioral biometrics — technologies designed to safeguard organizations against fraud, impersonation, and synthetic media manipulation.

Advisor

San Murugesan

AI’s rapid adoption offers transformative potential but also introduces significant risks — some with potentially irreversible consequences. This Advisor highlights the importance of strategic leadership in managing these risks through integrated business, AI, and organizational strategies. It underscores the need for human oversight in critical systems, structured AI risk management frameworks, and a commitment to responsible development.

Advisor

Paul Godfrey, Vishal Gajjar

This Advisor introduces the Sustainability Canvas, a strategic framework designed to help CSOs and business leaders develop integrated, long-term sustainability programs. Anchored by four compass points — internal versus external focus and private markets versus the public square — the Canvas identifies key areas of sustainability action across compliance, efficiency, innovation, and community engagement. By linking activities across these quadrants, organizations can unlock synergies that drive economic, social, and strategic value.

Article

Trevor Hunter

Trevor Hunter examines how leader character strengthens board decision-making. As ESG considerations and the UN’s Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) reshape board responsibilities, directors are now accountable to a broader set of stakeholders beyond shareholders. Hunter draws on the Leader Character Framework developed by Mary Crossan, Gerard Seijts, and Jeffrey Gandz of Canada’s Ivey Business School, highlighting its role in navigating complex — and sometimes conflicting — obligations.

Article

Shuhui Wang, Hirindu Kawshala

Shuhui Wang and Hirindu Kawshala analyze more than 14,000 earnings call transcripts to examine how CEO overconfidence impacts firm complexity. They find that overconfident CEOs tend to reduce complexity, often at the cost of long-term alignment, as illustrated by John Flannery’s short tenure at General Electric. Their study underscores the importance of aligning CEO traits with a firm’s strategic and operational needs, particularly during leadership transitions. Boards must discern whether simplification efforts reflect sound strategy or risky overconfidence.

Article

Siah Hwee Ang

Siah Hwee Ang calls for a shift in how executives engage with boards — not just as monitors or advisers but as long-term strategic assets. He advocates for structures that tap into directors’ expertise through agenda setting, follow-ups, and subcommittees. Boards’ hard skills can be institutionalized via staggered succession, while soft skills can be preserved by documenting decision-making processes. Regular engagement is key, with boards contributing to short-, medium-, and long-term strategic discussions.

Article

Filip Lestan, Ruy de Quadros Carvalho

Filip Lestan and Ruy de Quadros Carvalho analyze 249 Brazilian firms to assess how board structure influences innovation governance. They found that forming innovation-related committees is far more impactful than vision statements or rhetoric, enabling boards to ask better questions and oversee complex initiatives. Larger boards are more likely to form such committees, while CEO duality and director busyness significantly reduce the likelihood. The article concludes with four actionable steps to strengthen innovation governance through board design.

Article

David Larcker, Amit Seru, Brian Tayan, Laurie Yoler

David F. Larcker, Amit Seru, Brian Tayan, and Laurie Yoler explore how AI could reshape boardrooms by enhancing the volume, quality, and timeliness of information available to directors. AI can reduce information asymmetry, support predictive analysis, and enable real-time scenario planning. These tools help boards become more proactive and better prepared for meetings. However, the authors caution that greater access to information may blur the line between governance and operations, requiring executives to manage directors’ deeper involvement carefully.