Etsy, the online marketplace connecting millions of creative buyers and sellers, has appointed Rafe Colburn as Chief Product and Technology Officer. In his expanded role, Colburn will oversee both product and engineering for the Etsy marketplace, reporting to President and Chief Growth Officer Kruti Patel Goyal…
Microsoft’s Chief of AI, Mustafa Suleyman, has warned that studying whether artificial intelligence models could develop consciousness is “both premature, and frankly dangerous.” In a recent blog post, Suleyman argued that adding weight to the idea of AI welfare could intensify existing challenges, such as unhealthy attachments to chatbots and AI-induced psychological issues…
Toronto-based artificial intelligence startup Cohere has appointed Joelle Pineau, a Canadian AI scientist and former Meta executive, as head of its AI strategy. Pineau, a Professor at McGill University, previously spent nearly eight years at Meta overseeing its FAIR lab and contributing to the early development of the company’s open Llama models…
As Chief Technology Officer at Rippling, Albert Strasheim thrives in high-growth environments where scaling systems under pressure is the norm. Known for arriving at pivotal inflection points often when early infrastructure is on the brink of collapse, he has repeatedly rebuilt and hardened core systems while they’re still in production. At Rippling, he orchestrates the work of dozens of engineering teams, “connecting the dots” between products, platforms, and people to keep a fast-moving, multi-product company running smoothly…
Claudia Toussaint, Chief People and Sustainability Officer at Xylem, has redefined how a global enterprise can merge culture, purpose, and operational excellence. Steering the integration of Xylem and Evoqua Water Technologies, she made culture—not structure—the foundation of the company’s operating model transformation. She championed transparency among leaders, built trust through open dialogue, and emphasized aligned behaviors over rigid processes…
Mark McClain, CEO and Co-Founder of identity security leader SailPoint, didn’t set out to be an entrepreneur. He once envisioned retiring from a corporate career at IBM or HP, but found himself drawn to smaller companies where building strong teams took priority over climbing ladders. Today, McClain is known for championing a distinctly human approach to leadership…
“I think it expands people’s minds to travel,” said Tara Bunch, Global Head of Operations at Airbnb. “You have an opportunity [to] explore neighborhoods, to get kind of off the beaten path, to meet people, to go to new places that are not necessarily like big tourist destinations.” That mindset drives Bunch’s work leading Airbnb’s Community Support, Trust, and Payments teams ensuring seamless support for users in over 220 countries and managing transactions in 63 currencies…
David Schwartz, Chief Technology Officer at Ripple, has never been one to follow the conventional route. Long before the rise of cryptocurrencies, Schwartz was programming complex logic into calculators—a passion sparked by his father’s interest in early computing. This hands-on experimentation with flow-based computing helped shape his belief in direct, transparent systems—principles that continue to underpin his work today…
Jesse Levinson won’t declare victory just yet, not even when his team’s AI is already performing at superhuman levels. Instead, he focuses on measurable improvement. At Zoox, the autonomous mobility company he co-founded and now serves as Chief Technology Officer, Levinson is leading a new era of transportation defined by clean, safe, bidirectional electric vehicles built specifically for riders. “We never say we’re done,” he explains…
Ashley Goldsmith, Chief People Officer at Workday, is driving a workforce transformation that balances advanced technology with timeless human skills. She believes that AI’s greatest impact is how it unlocks new human potential. “Do those skills atrophy if they aren’t used?” she’s asked, underscoring her belief that human-centric leadership and empathy must evolve alongside automation…
