2025 AI Playbook for CPOs

The 2025 AI Playbook, The Role of CPOs in the Inevitable and Uncertain AI Future, is presented in partnership with Capgemini and Microsoft.

Introducing the new AI Playbook, The Role of CPOs in the Inevitable and Uncertain AI Future. Presented in partnership with Capgemini and Microsoft, this guide is designed to help Chief Product Officers (CPOs) navigate the evolving role of AI in product strategy and organizational leadership.

Curated by Products That Count Resident CPO Renée Niemi, the AI Playbook distills insights from exclusive roundtable discussions with top CPOs, uncovering strategies for putting AI on the product roadmap, how to navigate trust, and why the CPO is the role that must lead the AI revolution in product businesses. 

“These insights from top Chief Product Officers cut through the noise surrounding AI and identify what’s truly working,” said Niemi. “We discovered a clear framework for how CPOs should be approaching AI today. CPOs are building the guardrails that balance innovation with responsible implementation, ensuring customer trust and good business outcomes.”

The AI Playbook highlights five key themes:

• AI Is Here, and CPOs Must Take Charge: The age of AI is here, transforming both products and organizations. CPOs are uniquely positioned to guide AI initiatives, empowering and organizing their teams to solve complex customer challenges while streamlining workflows.
• Flexibility & Collaboration Are Key: To stay competitive, CPOs need flexible organizational structures and strategic collaborations across tech, sales, and marketing. Balancing centralized support with decentralized innovation is the winning formula.
• Trust is Earned, Not Given: Customer adoption – and retention – hinges on trust. CPOs must embrace transparent data policies, tailored experiences for different generations, and a commitment to human oversight where it matters most.
• Build, Partner, and Scale Responsibly: The best approach is to build core AI capabilities in-house while partnering for foundational models. Start small, scale thoughtfully, and always prioritize responsible AI implementation.
• Data Policies & IP Matter: Robust data policies and careful consideration of intellectual property are essential. Building a foundation of data quality, privacy, and compliance is key to earning and keeping customer trust.

With every day bringing new innovations in AI, product and business leaders need to stay ahead of the curve. The AI Playbook serves as a strategic roadmap for CPOs looking to harness AI’s potential while mitigating risks.

The AI Playbook is now available for download below.