[CXOTALK] Google Cloud's CTO on AI Strategy, Agentic AI, and More

Artificial intelligence is no longer emerging, and enterprise leaders face critical decisions about which capabilities to adopt, when to deploy them, and how to prepare for what's next. We speak with Will Grannis, Chief Technology Officer of Google Cloud, for an insider's view on Google's AI strategy and its implications for enterprise transformation.

Will discusses Google's vision for autonomous AI agents and explains why the company made a fundamental architectural decision to focus on native multimodal models with Gemini. The conversation examines tough lessons Google has learned about deploying AI in production, the organizational challenges that often outweigh technology issues, and common patterns behind successful enterprise AI adoption.

Join this strategic conversation for executives navigating the rapidly evolving AI landscape to gain clarity on where to invest, what to avoid, and how to position your organization for the age of agentic AI.

Key Topics:

• The evolution from AI tools to autonomous multi-agent systems

• Google's architectural strategy behind Gemini and multimodal AI

• What works (and what doesn't) in enterprise AI at scale

• Preparing for the next wave of AI capabilities

Episode Participants

Will Grannis is the chief technology officer at Google Cloud, where he leads a global team of technology executives and senior engineers who work hand-in-hand with Google’s largest customers. In 2022, Will founded a new subsidiary, Google Public Sector, acting as CEO of the new division until the permanent leadership team was in place. Will and the team established a foundational capability that today helps the U.S. government accelerate their cloud initiatives and digital transformations with the differentiated technology and talent of Google.

Michael Krigsman is a globally recognized analyst, strategic advisor, and industry commentator known for his deep expertise in business transformation, innovation, and leadership. He has presented at industry events worldwide and written extensively on the reasons for IT failures. His work has been referenced in the media over 1,000 times and in more than 50 books and journal articles; his commentary on technology trends and business strategy reaches a global audience.

Oct 10: Will Grannis, Chief Technology Officer, Google Cloud

Oct 17: Tim Crawford, CIO Advisor, Avoa

Oct. 31: Lord Tim Clement-Jones and Lord Chris Holmes, Members, UK House of Lords

Nov. 14: Sangeet Paul Choudary, Author, Platform Thinking Labs

Nov. 21: Michael Lefenfeld, CEO, Hexion

Jan. 16: Prashant Mehrotra, EVP and Chief AI Officer, US Bank

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