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Forbes Exclusive Reveals 34 CEOs' Optimism and Fear About Agentic AI's Impact on Business

Published
Score
20

Why it matters

Thirty-four chief executives across industries told Forbes this week that agentic AI—software that autonomously thinks, decides, and acts—represents a fundamental break from generative AI tools. The executives expressed simultaneous enthusiasm and alarm. Varun Krishna, CEO of Rocket Companies, crystallized the shift: "AI is no longer just creating; it is thinking, deciding and acting." The optimism collides with a hard reality: most organizations lack the internal architecture to deploy autonomous agents safely. Siloed data, fragmented ownership, and undefined governance are now existential problems rather than operational inconveniences.

The full roster of 34 executives remains undisclosed. What is clear is that the conversation has moved past whether AI belongs in the workplace to how companies will redesign operations around autonomous systems. Gartner warned in June 2025 that over 40 percent of agentic AI projects face cancellation by 2027, citing escalating costs, unclear ROI, and inadequate risk controls. The specific governance frameworks these executives are implementing—and their success rates—remain largely private.

For in-house counsel and compliance officers, this moment demands immediate attention. Agentic AI requires governed identities for every agent and granular access controls across data systems. Organizations that fail to address data silos and ownership fragmentation risk both security breaches and operational failure. The technical capability exists. The organizational readiness does not. Attorneys should expect a wave of governance frameworks, data access disputes, and liability questions as companies attempt to deploy these systems at scale.

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