Chief AI Officer

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What the market looks like

We've tracked 15 executive-level AI operations postings in the US over the last six months, concentrated in technology, financial services, and professional services hubs across California, New York, and Texas. Chief AI Officer roles at this level typically command $210k–$360k in base compensation, with boards increasingly looking for operators who can govern AI adoption at scale while translating technical complexity for the C-suite. The strongest candidates bring hands-on experience building or scaling AI functions within complex organizations—not just strategy—paired with credibility across both engineering and business stakeholders.

Job responsibilities

• Own the enterprise AI strategy, roadmap, and governance framework; align AI investment with business outcomes and risk tolerance

• Build and lead the AI operations team—recruiting talent, defining processes, and establishing centers of excellence across the organization

• Partner with the CTO, CFO, and business unit leaders to identify high-impact AI use cases, prioritize deployments, and measure ROI

• Establish AI risk, compliance, and ethics protocols; ensure models meet regulatory, security, and fairness standards before production

• Oversee AI infrastructure decisions—cloud platforms, data pipelines, MLOps tooling—and manage vendor relationships

• Communicate AI maturity, progress, and blockers to the board and executive team; shape organizational culture around responsible AI adoption

• Drive continuous learning across the organization; stay current on AI research, emerging tools, and competitive landscape shifts

Candidate requirements

• 8+ years building or scaling AI/ML functions in enterprise settings—as an AI leader, architect, or founding head of an AI team

• Proven ability to translate between technical and business stakeholders; comfort presenting AI strategy and risk to boards or C-suite

• Hands-on fluency in AI/ML fundamentals, data architecture, and MLOps practices; you've reviewed model designs and deployment pipelines

• Experience shipping multiple AI products or capabilities from conception through production; you understand end-to-end delivery challenges

• Demonstrated leadership of engineering or cross-functional teams of 5+ people; track record of hiring and building strong talent

• Familiarity with AI governance, model risk, regulatory compliance, or ethics frameworks in regulated industries (financial services, healthcare, or comparable)