Thoughtful experimentation—not hype—will determine long-term success. “AI is doing 30% of development work,” said one tech CEO. This bold claim, recently made by the CEO of a major tech company, was crafted to catch headlines—and it did. It sounds like progress. It sounds like a leap forward. But when I spoke with VPs and directors at the same organization, a different story emerged. Behind closed doors, they expressed confusion and growing pressure. The top-level messaging didn’t align with operational realities. Teams were left asking:  The message is unclear from the top leaders. How do we make sure the AI output is validated? What does quality look like? Who is responsible…