​From 'AI-First' To 'AI-Powered': What Separates Rhetoric From Practice

Innovation​From 'AI-First' To 'AI-Powered': What Separates Rhetoric From PracticeByCintia Barcelos,Forbes Councils Member.for Forbes Technology CouncilCOUNCIL POSTExpertise from Forbes Councils members, operated under license. Opinions expressed are those of the author. | Membership (fee-based)Jun 12, 2026, 06:15am EDTCintia Scovine Barcelos is CTO of Bradesco, responsible for Infrastructure, Cloud, Operations, Cybersecurity, Architecture, Data and AI. getty​Today, few companies can still deny the potential of artificial intelligence. Yet not all are able to place it at the heart of their strategy. This has become one of the defining challenges of the corporate landscape: Large-scale AI adoption, once seen as a competitive advantage, now reveals an organization’s true ability to execute. And it is precisely in the gap between narrative and practice that many initiatives lose momentum.In AI-first companies, artificial intelligence stops being “just technology” and becomes the starting point for decisions, products, processes and operating models. An AI-first organization uses AI to enhance customer and business journeys from the outset. It is a strategic reinvention that rethinks the entire business model, reshaping how products are designed, how decisions are made and how efficiency is built, with AI as the foundation. Early on, classic mistakes tend to happen. Some companies prioritize technology alone. Others underestimate data, governance and culture. In other words, they try to fit AI into old ways of working while sidelining the real needs of customers and the business. The outcome is always the same: rework, operational risk and frustration. Another common mistake is accelerating without a method. Organizations scale disconnected solutions without a platform, without guardrails (protective boundaries) and without clear human oversight. In practice, AI becomes a layer added on top of what already exists, without changing decisions, processes...