Corporate Leaders Reflect on Their Careers at Executives of the Year Impact Dinner

At TIME’s Executives of the Year Impact Dinner, held in New York, three executives from distinct companies gathered to discuss their leadership roles in today’s technological era. The event was presented by Rokt.

Gary Brantley, the senior vice president and chief information officer at the National Football League, reflected on the uncertainty that accompanies rapidly developing technology. Despite the exciting potential of advancements, he cautioned that human decision-making will ultimately determine whether such progress brings about positive or negative consequences.

He emphasized that many choices regarding the future will feel ordinary when made, being a result of personal decisions like who to listen to, what to fund, and when to act. The ultimate accountability, according to Brantley, lies with the individual.

Selena Deckelmann, the chief technology and product officer at Wikimedia Foundation, highlighted the crucial role humans play in shaping the impact of technology. She shared how a typhoon in her family’s past led her to connect with a musician through Wikipedia, demonstrating the power of technology to foster human connections and shared information. Deckelmann stressed that while technology cannot decide how to live a good life or give meaning to one’s existence, it is people and communities that do.

David Griffiths, the group head of artificial intelligence at Citi bank, also addressed the impact of technology, acknowledging the excitement it brings along with the unsettling implications. He pointed out that the future will not feel historic when we decide upon it, but rather be the result of quiet actions like choosing who to listen to, funding certain initiatives, and determining when to wait or act. Ultimately, the responsibility for the outcomes of these choices lies with those most affected by them.