Artificial intelligence is changing the business world in ways we could not have imagined until recently. How exactly—and what the future holds—was the topic of a panel discussion at the TIME100 Impact Dinner: Leaders Shaping the Future of AI in San Francisco on Monday, moderated by TIME executive editor Nikhil Kumar.
The panelists were Ravi Kumar SCEO of Cgniant, which sponsored the event; Athena Kanioura, director of strategy and transformation at PepsiCo, which also sponsored the event; And Jared Kaplanco-founder and chief scientist of the company anthropic. Ravi Kumar and Kaplan were both part of the 2025 show. AI TIME100 listfeaturing the 100 most influential people in artificial intelligence this year, from computer scientists to business leaders, politicians and artists.
“One of the things about public discussions about AI is that they quite often focus on the companies behind the technology and what they do,” said Nikhil Kumar of TIME, introducing the discussion. “But of course the main reason why this is so important is that it has a much broader impact, including on companies like PepsiCo.”
TIME's Kumar asked the three panelists questions about various aspects of how businesses use AI, including what changes and transformations will mean for the workplace and how regulation should be approached.
Kanyura spoke about the role of artificial intelligence behind the scenes at PepsiCo and how it has changed the business. She explained that PepsiCo has an artificial intelligence strategy that includes automating manual tasks and ensuring the most innovative sales process for businesses selling PepsiCo products. “I think we are one of the very few companies [where] all 320,000 employees have been trained to use AI,” she said, adding that the company is committed to improving the lives of its employees through AI, rather than using the technology to cut jobs.
Counceant's Kumar spoke about what these changes and transformations will mean for the workplace. The company is helping other companies deploy and use AI, and Kumar emphasized that the number of entry-level jobs may actually grow (Cignant is certainly hiring more, he said), while jobs requiring more experience may shrink. “Interdisciplinary skills at the intersection of technology will be much more important than skills associated with experience,” he said. He added that AI could be an important driver of “upward social mobility.”
Kaplan also addressed the issue of jobs, noting that It is important that policymakers think ahead about the implications of technology and “plan for the worst as well as the best.”
“In the short term, AI will make everyone more productive,” Kaplan said, “but I’m really worried about the long term.” He also noted that regulation should not be feared. Anthropic supports SB 53 – new California law holding leading AI developers accountable for some of the most serious risks. “It's easier [for companies to integrate AI] if AI is safer from things like rapid adoption and misuse,” he said. “You can count on it, and it’s safer.”
The discussion concluded with each participant reflecting on what events they would most like to see happen in the next couple of years.
For Kaniura, thinking about how PepsiCo sources ingredients internationally, it was using artificial intelligence to solve problems in the planet's food systems. It can be used, for example, to help farmers take care of their soil and practice regenerative agriculture.
For Cowlant's Kumar, it was the rise of agent-based AI that Performs functions with minimal supervision. He envisions how “agency capital” embeds itself in organizations and helps understand work processes.
And for Kaplan, it was about the “democratization of knowledge,” as well as simply giving everyone more sophisticated advice. “I think next year we’ll see scientists,” he said, “be able to get advice from AI that speeds up scientific research.”
TIME100 Dinner: Leaders Shaping the Future of Artificial Intelligence, presented by PepsiCo, Cowlant, General Catalyst, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
