But ask why AI isn’t scaling in their organization, and the answer usually has nothing to do with technology. The real challenges are leadership, alignment and cultural readiness.
That was one of the clearest takeaways from Valtech and Google Cloud’s recent AI in retail roundtable. With leaders from Selfridges, EasyJet and others around the table, one theme kept coming up: AI doesn’t scale because of tools. It scales because of people.
Leadership means more than investing in tools
“AI agents represent the next frontier of software,” said Alvaro Silva-Santisteban, AI Solution Lead at Google Cloud. But the companies making real progress are the ones creating space for AI to succeed.
Leadership in this context means:
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Setting a clear direction for where AI can add value
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Creating space to experiment
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Aligning tech, product and business teams around shared goals
As Valtech’s Ed Rees put it, the shift in 2023 and 2024 didn’t happen because of breakthrough tech. It happened because leadership made room for progress and backed it with budget.
All of a sudden, people were putting budget behind it.
What it takes to move quickly and scale
The organizations successfully embedding AI are creating the right conditions for experimentation. From the roundtable, three consistent enablers emerged:
1. Empowered experimentation
The fastest movers have created internal sandboxes, pilot budgets and access to low-code or no-code tools. These let teams test and learn without the friction of long development cycles.
Alvaro emphasized Google’s commitment to enabling not just developers, but business users to build and deploy AI agents. Lewis Sullivan, Head of Strategy and Programs at easyJet holidays, agreed, encouraging teams to explore tools that feel intuitive rather than forcing a one-size-fits-all solution across the business.
2. A culture of measurement
From A/B testing to real-time feedback loops, the best AI strategies are data-driven. Teams define what success looks like and measure against it.
Ed put it clearly: “This shouldn’t be about anybody’s opinion. This is about the data telling us what’s working.”
3. People-first implementation
Having humans in the loop is essential. AI should augment your teams, not replace them.
Alvaro called it a philosophy. Ed added that when it’s done right, AI doesn’t feel like a new system. It should feel as if your work’s gotten easier.
Scaling AI requires trust
The most AI-ready organizations:
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Trust in the tech to deliver.
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Trust in leadership to support the strategy.
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Trust that teams will be supported through change.
To scale AI, leaders need more than vision. They need to create the real-world conditions for experimentation, collaboration and continuous improvement.
The future belongs to the teams who can apply AI with focus
Teams will define the future of enterprise AI. This won’t be a question of who has the best models. It’s a question of whether teams know how to apply those models, measure their impacts and embed them into daily operations.
All that starts with leadership.
Ready to scale AI with purpose?
We help ambitious brands turn AI potential into measurable impact. Whether you’re identifying use cases or embedding the right capabilities, Valtech is your partner in making AI work at scale. Let’s talk.
