The role of leaders in shaping AI’s transformative impact

With the start of every new year, I find myself looking back and looking ahead. This year, reflecting on my long career in computer science, the dawn of AI, and now as director of an organization helping to develop and prepare tomorrow’s global leaders, I’m optimistic about what lies ahead.

As reported in a recent paper I co-authored, Shaping AI’s Impact on Billions of Lives, AI will be used for good only if current and future leaders act strategically, collaborate across sectors, and focus on using the technology to enhance human capabilities and societal well-being while guiding its development responsibly. AI is a transformative tool that can address global challenges while creating vast opportunities—with the capacity to improve lives in critical areas like employment, education, and healthcare. 

Fears of AI eliminating jobs and replacing job functions dominate headlines when greater attention should be paid to how it can boost job satisfaction and productivity, as well as job creation. Over the last 50 years, the number of typists fell about fiftyfold and telephone operators by three hundredfold, while other jobs increased. For example, the number of programmers shot up elevenfold, while commercial airline pilots grew eightfold. To enhance the nature of work, AI should empower humans to do more, enabling them to focus on the satisfying parts of their job, reducing laborious, time-consuming tasks, and allowing time for upskilling and wage gains. 

AI is already in active use among students and teachers, where it can free up time for teachers to spend with their students and help alleviate burnout. As the U.S. and many other nations grapple with a shortage of K-12 teachers, AI can help improve the effectiveness and efficiency of teaching and yield measurable benefits for all learners.

In healthcare, the collaboration of experts with AI systems can improve the quality of care, reducing misdiagnosis rates and evaluating patients more accurately. Initially, AI should be deployed in lower-risk domains, such as automating paperwork or transcribing physician notes. Ultimately, AI could be used to integrate all of a patient’s health-related data and medical history to inform future healthcare decisions.

To promote collaboration across sectors, AI scientists must join with domain experts, policymakers, and other stakeholders to co-create solutions that maximize societal benefits and minimize potential harms. Emerging leaders have a big part to play in this collaboration, identifying diverse voices across disciplines and bringing them together in service of a common goal: marshaling AI thoughtfully and responsibly to deliver significant societal benefits to all.

But real progress will happen only if we prioritize responsible AI, establishing governance structures to ensure AI complies with existing laws and ethical standards. Misuse of AI should be addressed with the same rigor as any other unlawful activity, and as educators we must prepare students for a world where AI is broadly used, so they can be positive contributors. Despite its rapid acceleration, AI is still in its early stages. Leaders should encourage innovation and adaptability while remaining vigilant to emerging concerns and challenges.

As we continue to explore the transformative potential of AI, we must address one of its most widely feared downsides: the risks of misinformation, disinformation, and harmful biases embedded in decision-making processes. These challenges pose significant threats to productive civic discourse and trust in critical systems. However, AI also offers powerful tools to combat these very issues—helping to identify and mitigate misinformation, fostering healthier civic dialogue, and curating information consumption in ways that promote accuracy and fairness. By taking a responsible, thoughtful approach, leaders can harness AI to reduce these risks and build a more informed society where all stakeholders can benefit.

Yes, AI is a disruptive force, but as the past has shown time and again, disruption has the power to shake loose what’s no longer serving us and to empower people and improve lives. Leaders should embrace the possibilities AI presents, balancing optimism with caution and pursuing the positive impacts it can have on economic growth, poverty reduction, healthcare, education, and the environment. At the same time, leaders have a responsibility to guard against potential misuses, unintended negative consequences, and ethical concerns through active oversight.

My advice for our future global leaders, at Knight-Hennessy Scholars and beyond, is to engage with the public and other stakeholders in recognizing the meaningful opportunities and challenges AI presents. Transparency will foster trust and enable constructive dialogue. We must never lose sight of the inherent risks, but let’s shift the narrative toward the possibilities AI opens, which range from creating individual opportunities to tackling many of the world’s most complex problems.

Together, we can build infrastructure and systems that prepare humanity for changes brought about by AI and encourage research, development, and policies that consciously and proactively work for the common good. That is a goal I hope we can all embrace.

John Hennessy is Co-founder and Director of Knight-Hennessy Scholars. He is Chairman of the Board of Alphabet and serves on the Board of Trustees for the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Hennessy has been on the faculty of Stanford University since 1977 and previously served as the President of the university for 16 years after roles including chair of Computer Science, dean of the School of Engineering, and university provost.

He co-founded MIPS Computer Systems and Atheros Communications. He and Dave Patterson were awarded the ACM A.M. Turing Prize for 2017 and the National Academy of Engineering Draper Prize in 2022.