Special Edition: Reflections from the All-In Summit

This post originally appeared on LinkedIn, dated September 19, 2025.

The All-In Podcast Summit felt like standing at the fault line between two eras: cultural decline on one side, exponential innovation on the other. The debates were sharp, the predictions provocative, and the undercurrent clear: technology and macroeconomics are no longer separate conversations. They are one and the same.

And at the center of it all is AI, with a special focus on Agentic AI. I was encouraged to see AI being discussed as more than a pilot or a toy; it was regarded as a vehicle for growth, resilience, and human progress.

Here are the three arcs that stayed with me:

 1. Pragmatism vs. Philosophy: How Nations Approach AI

Eric Schmidt, Former CEO of Google and Executive Chairman & CEO of Relativity Space, drew a sharp comparison: while U.S. companies often get stuck in philosophical debates, Chinese firms are ruthlessly pragmatic, deploying AI directly into workflows to deliver measurable value.

That’s exactly the mindset we’re driving with Salesforce AgentForce: real outcomes, not endless pilots.

Elon Musk echoed that spirit with his deep dive on Tesla Optimus. He spent several minutes just on the robot’s hand, the engineering breakthroughs required to mimic human dexterity, and the fact that he knows the unit cost will be ~$20K. That combination of detail obsession + visionary ambition is rare.

CEO Imperative: If you want to be a relevant leader in the AI era, you must be hands-on. Curiosity and technical depth are no longer optional.

 2. Category Creation as the Engine of Growth

Orlando Bravo reminded us that Marc Benioff’s invention of SaaS in 1999 did more than build Salesforce. It created the category that fueled decades of software investing, including Thoma Bravo’s rise.

Now we’re at another inflection point: Agentic AI is the new category. Just as SaaS reshaped the last era, this wave will define the next: driving enterprise value, fueling investment, and transforming how organizations operate at scale.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) leaders reinforced this, describing the moment as a “Manhattan Project for AI + energy.” From small modular reactors to opening up national labs for hyperscaler data centers, the U.S. is mobilizing infrastructure, capital, and talent like never before.

CEO Imperative: Category creation multiplies capital. Leaders must decide: are you building inside the category, or helping to define it?

 3. Humanity at the Center

One of the most powerful voices on stage came from Sian Leah Beilock, the President of Dartmouth College, one of the few female leaders present. Her reminder was sharp: women and people of color don’t want opportunities based on identity alone; we want our intellectual capacity recognized, embraced, and celebrated. She grounded it in New Hampshire’s motto: “Live free or die.”

And in a very different way, comedy night offered its own truth. A comedian joked: “When you’re in a debate with your wife, don’t come armed with data and facts.

Acknowledge, connect, and redirect, or all hell breaks loose.” As much as I laughed, I also agreed. We’re not robots. Leadership is about connecting with emotions, not just leading with data.

Beyond the stage, the true value of the Summit came from conversations. I connected with Teresa Harrold Michaud, CIPP from Cooley LLP, one of the top litigation lawyers in the world, who, together with Bobby, gave me a behind-the-scenes look at the Meta vs. Anthropic cases. I caught up with Natasha H. Tu from Salesforce and we met Thomas Donnelly of Amplifier Security, Sarah Blanchard of Craft Ventures, and Antonio Rosa of Ignyte Insurance... These are the kinds of collisions of people and ideas that make me optimistic; we’ll build something meaningful together.

CEO Imperative: Don’t lose sight of the humanity in the human+AI equation. Technology runs on data; humanity runs on dignity, emotion, and connection. Both matter.

The Call to Leaders

The SaaS era birthed giants. Now, the Agentic era will create the next generation of giants.

We already know that AI will transform your industry. The question remains whether you will lead with vision and pragmatism, embracing the hands-on detail, the bold category creation, and the human dignity that defines this new age.

Because in the end, technology may run on data, but humanity runs on connection. And the leaders who integrate both will shape the future.

 I’m calling this a Special Edition of Inside the Agentic Enterprise. If you were at the Summit, or have reflections on where pragmatism, category creation, and humanity intersect in the AI era, I’d love to hear them.