mumbai/bengaluru, Feb. 19 -- Across Indian organizations, artificial intelligence (AI) has moved from pilot projects to the corner office. Over the past 12 months, companies have announced at least 50 senior AI-focused leadership hires-most notably chief AI officers (CAIOs)-across fintech, banking, manufacturing, logistics, media and enterprise technology, according to executive search firm Longhouse. The pace has accelerated sharply over the past six months, with more than a third of these appointments announced between November 2025 and February 2026, data from Longhouse showed. AI is increasingly becoming an operating layer across both tech startups and legacy firms, rather than a side initiative housed within engineering teams. "Across India, companies are increasingly appointing CAIOs as AI moves from pilot projects to full-scale enterprise adoption," said Anshuman Das, chief executive and co-founder of Longhouse. "AI is now a board-level priority, not just a technology initiative." On 17 July 2024, Mint reported that several new-age firms, including food-delivery platform Zomato and fitness app Healthifyme, chose not to replace departing chief technology officers (CTOs). Others, such as food-delivery company Swiggy, e-two-wheeler maker Ola Electric Mobility, ticket-booking platform BookMyShow, and business-to-business e-commerce firm Udaan, redistributed technology mandates internally or left the role vacant, according to Longhouse's earlier research. These moves are early signals of how the top deck is shifting in the AI era. Among the 50-plus appointments tracked, at least 15 carried an explicit CAIO or clearly AI-first mandate, while many others embedded AI into expanded CTO, chief digital and information officer (CDIO) or transformation roles. "We have converged AI and core technology leadership under the chief AI and technology officer," said Manu Awasthy, founder and CEO of digital private wealth management platform Centricity, which hired Kamal Kishore for the role in September. Fintech and banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) firms, like Motilal Oswal, Mirae Asset, IndoStar Capital and IndusInd Bank, with industrial groups like Jindal Steel and Blue Star, lead the pack. Media companies, including India Today and JioStar, and new-age firms such as Pocket FM have also created AI-native roles to reshape content production. However, of the 50 appointments, only two are women. Compensation reflects the weight of these new roles. Das said the position now sits firmly in the CXO band. For leaders who can scale models, build robust data foundations and drive commercialization, "total earning potential can cross the $1 million mark". Globally, the direction appears durable. An October study by the IBM Institute for Business Value found that 25% of Indian enterprises surveyed already have a CAIO, while 67% plan to appoint one within two years. Organizations with a CAIO reported a 10% higher return on AI investment....