Vishal Gupta (Lexmark CTO) on Driving AI ROI, Building Ethics Boards & Enabling Business Outcomes

In this episode of the CAIO Connect Podcast hosted by Sanjay Puri, we sit down with Vishal Gupta, Lexmark’s Global CTO, CIO, and SVP of Connected Technology — to discuss how he’s scaling AI-led transformation at a global level. In this episode: Why the “push” AI model is over — and the board is now driving the pull How Lexmark is embedding AI into key products and business functions The 4 big changes AI brings compared to past tech cycles Building AI strategies that create tangible enterprise value Vishal’s philosophy on talent development and “AI as a superpower” 💡 A must-watch for any technology or business leader thinking long-term about AI. 📺 Watch now and subscribe for more insights from top CAIOs and CIOs.  Resources Mentioned: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vishal-gupta-046149/  ⏱️ Timestamps: 0:00 Podcast Highlights & Introduction  3:19 Vishal’s journey from engineering to C-suite and the importance of solving the right problems  5:58 The CIO/CTO role: a shift from a push to a pull model for AI  8:10 The democratization of AI and the unprecedented interest in the technology 9:48 The hype cycle: AI as both an opportunity and a distraction  11:31 The critical role of change management and prioritizing use cases  14:23 How to prioritize use cases with a steering team  18:16 An overview of Lexmark's business and its technology roots  19:10 Real-world AI use cases at Lexmark (extending product life, automated proposals, customer support)  24:12 ROI of AI and building trust with business leaders  25:04 The secret sauce: developing talent internally to get buy-in and drive results  31:15 The war for AI talent and the importance of enabling existing employees 34:31 The Technology Rotation Program (TRP) for college hires  37:22 The changing role of the CIO and the inevitability of change  39:07 Driving productivity gains across the enterprise  41:35 Defining and implementing agentic AI  45:59 The security of AI: trust but verify  55:33 The importance of an AI ethics board and responsible AI development  58:48 Lightning Round of questions  59:53 Final thoughts and farewell