The article argues that companies must rethink the role of their marketing chief as AI transforms not just campaigns but entire growth engines. It explains that an “AI-first” CMO functions more like a “chief growth architect,” collaborating closely with the CTO to build data and AI infrastructure that binds customer signals, marketing activity, product development and other business functions together. CEOs should assess whether their CMO can design this integrated stack, cultivate talent and change culture, execute deeply (not just talk AI), challenge silos across the enterprise, and preserve human creativity even as automation and analytics scale. CEOs also need to support this expanded role—even when it ruffles other parts of the C-suite—because only with full backing can the CMO break traditional boundaries and drive meaningful AI-enabled growth.
