The New York Times’ deep dive into OpenAI’s explosive rise shows just how quickly AI has shifted from a lab curiosity to a boardroom agenda item. Companies are scrambling to figure out what tools like ChatGPT mean for creativity, workflows, and productivity – sometimes all at once. You can feel the momentum building, and the uncomfortable truth is that most organizations aren’t structurally ready for it. They’ll adopt AI the way many adopted cloud: suddenly, inconsistently, and under pressure.
What stands out most in OpenAI’s story is that the technology is evolving faster than the operational playbooks around it. Leaders are trying to project confidence while privately Googling “what is a transformer model.” Teams want guidance. Customers want clarity. And everyone wants guardrails that don’t yet exist. This moment isn’t just about AI – it’s about how organizations adapt to paradigm shifts without breaking themselves in the process.
If AI is going to reshape work, leadership, and even creative expectations, then we need to rethink more than tools. We need new norms, new skills, and an honest conversation about what we expect from technology versus what we expect from humans.
Are companies ready to rebuild workflows around intelligence that isn’t human? And what happens when the tech evolves faster than our ability to manage it?
