AI is transforming business. That much is clear. The real question is whether leaders are equipped to guide their people through the change.
Some are. Others are trying to have it both ways, insisting they are “people first” while replacing…people. And a few are leaning on fear to force adaptation without offering direction or support.
Here are three CEOs who each communicated their AI strategy in very different ways. One set a clear path. One contradicted himself. One pushed panic without structure. If you are leading through change, there is something to learn from each.
The Worst First: Duolingo’s Two-Faced Messaging
Luis von Ahn, CEO of Duolingo, announced a breakthrough. His company used generative AI to launch nearly 150 new courses in under a year. He pointed out that this would have taken over a decade using the old way. It was a bold, results-driven move.
But he also told employees that Duolingo remains people first and would not replace staff with AI. At the same time, he announced that contractors were being phased out and their responsibilities reassigned to automation.
That contradiction did not go unnoticed. It was not just confusing, it was disingenuous. People saw through it immediately. The message tried to satisfy everyone at once and ended up sounding like it believed nothing.
This is what happens when leaders allow corporate language to soften the reality of major change. The message sounded carefully scrubbed by the comms team. It protected the company’s image but cost the CEO personal credibility. That kind of inconsistency damages trust, and people remember it.
The Best Second: Shopify Was Clear, Direct, and In Control
Tobias Lütke at Shopify handled the same challenge with clarity. He made AI usage a fundamental expectation for all employees. Performance reviews and team workflows are now built around AI adoption. New hiring requests must include an analysis of how AI could fulfill the need instead.
“Using AI effectively is now a fundamental expectation of everyone at Shopify,” he wrote. “Stagnation is a slow-motion failure.”
No one at Shopify is unclear about what the company is doing or why. Lütke delivered a message that was straightforward and consistent. That structure creates alignment. It also communicates respect. People are far more likely to engage with a change when they understand what is expected and how they will be evaluated.
The message was honest. It made sense. And it gave people a framework for adapting to the change. Employees know they will likely eventually be replaced by AI but the fact is, they already knew that.
The Meh Third: Fiverr Had Urgency Without a Plan
Fiverr CEO Micha Kaufman delivered a message with urgency and intensity. He told employees that AI would impact everyone, including programmers, designers, salespeople, and even his own job. He encouraged people to master prompt engineering and warned that those who failed to adapt would lose value in the market.
The honesty was refreshing. It did not sound like it came from a communications team. But it also did not offer a plan. There were no resources, no systems, and no clear path forward. It frankly felt a little frantic.
Urgency is important during change. But urgency without structure does not build alignment. It creates uncertainty. Fear may drive short-term focus, but it does not lead to long-term commitment. People do not just need to know that something big is happening. They need to know what to do about it.
Having said that, Fiverr is an online marketplace for freelancers (who are the first to be laid off—see Duolingo message above) so he probably is really panicking.
What Every Leader Should Take From This
Shopify showed how to integrate AI into the business through clear expectations and aligned systems.
Duolingo demonstrated how fast trust can erode when a message does not match reality.
Fiverr showed that authenticity must be paired with guidance if you want people to act.
AI is going to keep accelerating. The pressure to evolve is real. Leaders will not succeed by trying to sound perfect. They will succeed by making honest decisions, communicating clearly, and aligning systems to support their people through change. That is how you keep your workforce engaged and prepared for what comes next.
Bottom line: Don’t spend your personal trust capital on a scrubbed communication plan that screams inauthenticity. Be real.
Elsewhere In Culture
Merging HR and tech might sound like a headline about efficiency, but it’s actually a culture story. When Moderna created the role of Chief People and Digital Technology Officer, they weren’t just reorganizing departments—they were acknowledging that the future of work demands a reimagined partnership between people and systems. This isn’t about replacing human capability. It’s about designing organizations around where human ingenuity is most valuable and where automation can free us up to do more meaningful work. That shift requires more than just AI fluency—it requires cultural fluency. Because what gets automated and what gets elevated sends a loud message about what (and who) we value.
Moderna’s example forces us to confront the truth that AI isn’t just a tech investment—it’s a culture strategy. You can’t implement 3,000 GPTs without reshaping how people experience their jobs, their roles, and their purpose. And if you’re doing that without intentional cultural design, you’re not scaling—you’re destabilizing. Culture is the connective tissue that holds transformation together. When HR and IT are on the same team, they can co-create systems that enhance both performance and belonging. But only if culture leads the way.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/workplace/corporate-bosses-workers-culture-changing-cbd19c2c
There’s something deeply revealing about how easily the rhetoric around employees has flipped—from “our greatest asset” to “everybody’s replaceable.” That’s not just economic pragmatism. It’s culture erosion. When CEOs talk about “lighting a fire under the team” or tell employees to be grateful they have jobs, they’re building cultures rooted in fear, not performance. And fear might deliver short-term compliance, but it doesn’t build trust, innovation, or sustainable results. At Culture Partners, we talk a lot about accountability—but true accountability starts at the top. If leaders want people to show up with commitment and resilience, they can’t simultaneously dehumanize them in public memos.
A culture built on transactional loyalty, inflated expectations, and executive bravado is going to crack when pressure hits. Instead of doubling down on tough talk and sabbatical rollbacks, leaders should be re-centering their organizations around clarity, belief, and ownership. That’s how you get results without burning people out. We’re not in 2021 anymore, sure—but pretending we can run companies like it’s 1985 isn’t the answer either. The organizations that thrive through disruption are the ones where leaders understand: you can demand performance and still lead with respect. Culture is how you do both.
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