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The next time you order a sack of White Castle sliders, a robot might come rolling up to you. The restaurant chain, a Midwestern fast-food staple, is partnering with Coco Robotics and Uber Eats to bring robotic delivery to the Chicago area. The partnership, announced today, will allow customers ordering from White Castles first participating location to order directly from the Uber Eats app and receive a robotic delivery with no additional steps or fees. And in a dense urban area like Chicago, having more robots and fewer cars on the road could help ease traffic and emissions issues related to delivery. We’re always open to whats new and what’s next, Jamie Richardson, White Castles vice president of marketing, tells Fast Company. If there’s a way to do something a little bit better, we want to find out what that is and try it. A fast food innovator looks ahead For White Castle, which innovated the concept of a fast-food restaurant in 1921, this is the next step in a shift toward an autonomous experience. The chain first deployed Flippy, the robotic fry cook, to a Chicago restaurant in 2020 before expanding its use to over 100 locations. The restaurant chain considers these shifts toward new technology a reflection of its core value of continuous crave, or continuous innovation, Richardson says. [Photo: White Castle X Coco] The robots used in the new partnership were developed by Coco Robotics, a last-mile delivery startup that was named one of Fast Companys most innovative robotics companies in 2022. More recently, it announced significant venture capital funding and partnerships with large companies like OpenAI, Uber Eats, and DoorDash. Part of the force propelling Cocos little red robots is their capacity for moving large amounts of goods while keeping costs low and carbon emissions at zero. They accomplish it with a 100-pound vehicle that uses artificial intelligenceand remote human operatorsto drive safely over unpredictable city terrain. We built these purpose-built autonomous vehicles that are designed to be the best way to move goods around a city, Zach Rash, Coco Robotics cofounder and CEO, tells Fast Company. They’re lightweight, they’re compact, they’re super energy efficient, and they’re big enough to fit six extra large pizzas and two liter bottle sodas and four grocery bagsmost of the types of things you would get delivered on demand. Bots and the city First launched in Santa Monica, California, the robots are now in several cities around the world, as far afield as Helsinki. The robots work best where there is a vibrant local economy of delivery, Rash says, but where congestion or other barriers add cost and hassle to traditional delivery. Chicago, in particular, fits the bill because it is a dense city where difficult winters can drive disparity between demand for delivery and supply of available drivers, Rash says, adding that theyve been successful in the Chicago market so far and are looking forward to launching the robots in new cities with similar characteristics later this year. For Uber Eats, also looking to expand its autonomous services and its reach in the Midwest market, the new partnership with White Castle offers an important opportunity. First launching in Chicago, this partnership with Coco Robotics and White Castle marks an important step in bringing zero-emission, sidewalk delivery to one of our most dynamic and operationally complex markets, Megan Jensen, Uber Eats global head of autonomous delivery operations, said in a statement to Fast Company. The robots, which started picking up burgers in Chicago a couple weeks ahead of the partnerships official launch, are already finding success in what Richardson considers White Castles second home town.
Category:
E-Commerce
When you log into Amazon, its AI-powered recommendation engine guides you towards a purchase. After you select your items and order, computer vision guides robots in fulfillment centers to pick up the inventory, and machine learning optimizes delivery routes. The Amazon order fulfillment system is paradigmatically hybridhundreds of thousands of human employees work closely with AI systems to deliver over 9 billion packages on the same or the next day to customers all around the world. This isnt the future. This is how your groceries get delivered. Its the hybrid world, where transactions blend multiple intelligences, and where leadership requires convergence. The Great Convergence We thought digital transformation was a destination: install software, train teams, done. We were wrong. Whats actually happening is a profound reshaping of business realitythe creation of a world where previously hard distinctions like humandigital, physicalvirtual, and emotionalalgorithmic are softening and blurring, a world where humans and AI systems are becoming inseparably entangled. Consider three seismic shifts: Markets Have Become Hybrid OrganismsCustomers dont distinguish digital from physical. They shop on Instagram, in-store, and via apps, expecting virtual assistants to remember everything. Customers exist everywhere, in all realities, fluidly moving between interacting with human and AI sales agents. Workforces Are HumanDigital PartnershipsRather than employees simply using digital tools, they are moving towards developing symbiotic relationships with them. For example, medical professionals can use AI to detect patterns invisible to humans, and simultaneously, human feedback trains and improves the AI system. The result is better than either humans or AI could achieve alone. Leadership Is Multi-Dimensional ChessRunning a company was complicated; now its complex. Complicated problems have solutions. Complex systems have endless, interconnected variables changing unpredictably. Leading in the hybrid world means deciding across dimensions you can never fully see. ‘Digital-First’ No Longer Holds Leaders often respond to technological transformation by demanding that everything must be reoriented around the new technologythe digital-first approach. But in a hybrid world this approach is mistaken. In a hybrid world, the challenge isnt that we must choose between physical versus digital or human versus machine. The challenge is that we need to orchestrate their convergence. This requires a new approach in three areas: 1. Hybrid Markets: Where Algorithms Meet Emotions Hybrid markets are fluid ecosystems where customers interact through multiple touchpoints hourlyhuman, AI, or blended. Starbuckss mobile app creates a hybrid experience, with AI-driven personalization generating hundreds of thousands of email variations. Predictive ordering and human barista craftsmanship drive 31% of U.S. orders via mobile, growing active rewards members to 34.3 million in 2023. But hybrid markets arent just about technologytheyre about emotional coherence. Targets predictive analytics identified pregnant customers but violated privacy expectations, showing algorithmic intelligence needs human judgment. The Convergence Solution: Blend data science, behavioral psychology, and ethics. Before deploying customer-facing AI, ask: What does the data say? (Analytics) How will customers feel? (Psychology) Should we do this? (Ethics) 2. Hybrid Workforces: Partners, Not Tools Goldman Sachs estimates AI could impact 300 million jobs, with two-thirds of occupations facing automation. But real value comes from augmentationAI handles routine tasks, humans focus on complex decisions, relationships, and innovation. For example, AI is revolutionizing the legal industry by speeding up and even fully automating routine operations like reviewing contracts, preparing client summaries, and tracking billable hours. This allows firms to redeploy lawyers to strategic roles like negotiating deals and advising on regulations, boosting both efficiency and job satisfaction. At Moderna, AI helped design its COVID-19 vaccine. AI created mRNA for scientists to test, scientists experimented with them in the lab, and AI then examined the resulting data to identify which of the mRNA sequences were suitable to advance to animal trials. In just 42 days, Moderna had a COVID-19 vaccine it could test on humansan unprecedented result, and one that would have been impossible without the close collaboration between human beings and AI systems. The Convergence Solution: Reimagine the workforce as a hybrid organism. Stop separating human resources and digital transformation. Create roles like: Human-AI Collaboration Designer: Engineers workflows leveraging each intelligences strengths. Cognitive Load Balancer: Ensures humans arent overwhelmed by digital complexity. Partnership Ethicist: Navigates moral implications of human-AI collaboration. 3. Hybrid Leadership: Navigating Paradox The test of a first-rate intelligence, said the American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function. Hybrid leaders will have to be first-rate leaders, because hybrid-age leaders must be paradox navigators. Every decision involves opposing extremes, and rather than choosing one or the other, hybrid leaders must hold them both in creative tension. Some fundamental contrasts are: Personalization versus Privacy Efficiency versus Employment Automation versus Authenticity Speed versus Reflection Global versus Local Virtual versus Physical Hybrid leaders dont respond to these contrasts with “either-or”they respond with both-and. The Convergence Solution: Build leadership teams blending: Technical Fluency: Knowing whats possible Psychological Insight: Understanding human responses Systems Thinking: Seeing connections Philosophical Depth: Navigating ethics Creative Courage: Embracing paradox as opportunity The 3 Pillars of Hybrid Success From studying thriving hybrid companies, three capabilities emerge: Fluid ArchitectureBuild systems that shift between human-led, AI-led, or blended modessystems that amplify human strengths like creativity when needed and automate tasks like background removal when appropriate. Convergent TeamsEnd departmental silos. Build teams blending: engineers who understand psychology, marketers who grasp data science, HR leaders who think like systems architects, and finance professionals who consider ethics. Adaptive GovernanceTraditional governance assumes stability. Hybrid governance assumes flux. Create frameworks handling paradox, ethical councils with technologists and philosophers, and metrics balancing efficiency and meaning. The Convergence Imperative: Your Next 90 Days The hybrid world rewards fast action and deep thinking. Heres your plan: Days 1 to 30: Map Your Hybrid Reality Identify humandigital interactions in your business. Document where they create value or friction. Spot paradoxes youre eliminating instead of leveraging. Days 31 to 60: Build Convergence Capabilities Form a convergent team mixing disciplines. Run a paradox workshop for leaders to practice holding contradictions. Redesign one process as a humanAI partnership. Days 61 to 90: Launch Your Hybrid Transformation Pilot a hybrid market initiative blending digital precision and human intuition. Redesign one role as a humanAI partnership. Establish hybrid governance to handle paradox. Hybrid Reality is Here to Stay Every interaction, employee experience, and leadership decision now exists in multiple dimensions. And in this multi-dimensional world, success belongs to those who think, lead, and create across all dimensions simultaneously. Thriving companies see hybrid as opportunity, creating convergence where human creativity and digital capability amplify each other, turning paradoxes into possibilities. And this world isnt temporaryits now the permanent condition of business. Either you decide what that means for your organization, or it will be decided for you.
Category:
E-Commerce
Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning. We hear all the time about how generative artificial intelligenceor gen AIis eliminating entry-level jobs and changing the way knowledge workers complete daily tasks. But how are CEOs integrating these tools into the day-to-day work of leading a business? To find out, I reached out to executives across industries to understand which AI tools theyre using and how these technologies are changing the way they lead. Heres what seven chief executivesand one chief commercial officershared, in their own words. Brad Bogolea, cofounder and CEO, Simbe Robotics, a robotics and engineering company I use ChatGPT almost every dayits developed a rich contextual memory of how I think, which makes it an incredibly effective partner for writing, decision-making, and pressure-testing strategy. For certain file types and formats, Ill turn to Gemini. The key is knowing which model gives you the best acceleration for the task. I use generative AI as a thought partner to move faster and think more clearly. Most often, its a [sounding board] for distilling ideas, pressure-testing conversation strategy, and sharpening my messaging. Whether Im prepping for a board call, investor meeting, or industry event, Ill use AI to draft talking points, uncover blind spots, and stress-test the framingoften from an Uber or in flight. At its best, AI helps me clarify what Im trying to say and why it matters. Its become an essential tool for thinking through complexity and communicating with precision. Elizabeth Buchanan, chief commercial officer, Rokt, an e-commerce technology company I use AI to accelerate how I consume information and frame decisions, whether thats transforming raw data into strategic narratives, refining product positioning, or stress-testing messaging. Its most powerful when used as a thought partnerhelping me evaluate decisions from multiple angles or refine how we communicate a complex idea with precision. At this stage of scale, decisiveness and speed are nonnegotiable. AI enables both. Its also fantastic to use it to get an update on everything a client has been talking about across touchpoints (their press and official updates to more casual LinkedIn posts from employees) to get an understanding of their current pain points or success stories. Its an absolute lifesaver. I automate these updates for myselfextraordinary time-saver! Dave Dama, founder and CEO, AquaSonic, and cofounder, Onyx Global Group, a consumer brand incubator I use AI to sharpen decision-making, speed up communication, and get to clarity faster. It helps me draft positioning frameworks, prep for key meetings, and collaborate with our CMO Jonathan Cohen on external messaging. I dont use it to replace judgmentbut it helps me move through the thinking and refinement process with more speed and less friction. Its become a trusted part of how I work through early-stage ideas. Spencer Hewett, founder and CEO, RADAR, a software company Recently, Ive been using tools like Fyxer, which is an AI executive assistant, and Cursor, which is a code editor. I also use ChatGPT and Claude as search engines for quick responses from my phone or desktop. I use gen AI tools to streamline email management and responses and sometimes use ChatGPT to brainstorm or flesh out ideas before I make a final decision. Ive also been impressed with ChatGPTs ability to surface talented candidates via their public LinkedIn profiles. Sami Inkinen, CEO, Virta Health, a health technology company On the strategic front, AI acts like an on-demand thought partnerI use it to synthesize market signals, explore strategic scenarios, and identify emerging risks or opportunities. What used to take a day of analyst work or hours of personal research now takes minutes. On the execution side, AI helps me move faster. I use it to draft communications, structure memos, and summarize long-form content, which frees me up to focus on high-leverage thinking and decision-making. Its a force multiplier for clarity and output. Looking ahead, I think AI will reshape how companies are structured. Well move from traditional pyramids to more of a diamond shapefewer layers, more empowered individuals, and highly productive, AI-augmented teams. That has implications not just for org design, but also for budgeting and growth. More companies will grow revenue and impact without growing headcount or spend at the same rate. Thats already happening at Virta. Steven Kramer, CEO, WorkJam, a software company Leveraging AI has been a game changer for WorkJam. We use a number of AI tools, such as Googles Gemini coding assistant and Google Agentspace to more effectively search for files across the organization. I have made AI adoption a mandate for all WorkJam team members in 2025, and we have given every employee access to multiple tools and established a steering group that is driving AI innovation everywhere. Our teams are constantly building new agents to improve our production processes, leveraging a whole suite of tools, such as JetBrains, Windsurf, and others. For simple tasks, we have several trained ChatGPT models that are also helpful. AI easily gives me back five to 10 hours a week, and sometimes more during planning cycles. I use that time to connect with our teams, have more unstructured conversations, and spend time with customers. Thats often where the best ideas surface. AI doesnt just help me do more, it creates the space to think better. Evan Reiser, cofounder and CEO, Abnormal Security, a cybersecurity company Generative AI and personalized AI agents are embedded into nearly every aspect of how I operate as CEO. These tools arent just assistantstheyre collaborators that expand my strategic and operational capacity. Here are some of the ways that I use them: Meeting management: A custom AI agent transcribes and processes most internal meetings, generating concise summaries, action items, and automated follow-up emails. This ensures execution and clarity without manua overhead. Personal executive coaching: Every week, a personalized Evan AI Coach reviews my meetings and delivers email feedback on where I was effective or where I could improve. It analyzes consistency in how I reinforce our mission, values, and strategy, and helps me reflect on areas like listening more deeply or recognizing team contributions. Customer intelligence: Prior to customer meetings, a research agent reviews external sources, (e.g., LinkedIn, X, news) and internal data, (e.g., Salesforce, product usage, subscription health) to generate briefing reports. These are delivered, automatically, 24 hours in advance, ensuring I walk into every conversation fully prepared and contextually aware. Virtual CXO advisers: Ive built custom GPTs trained on hundreds of pages of personal notes and audio transcripts from trusted domain experts. These role-specific agents, (e.g., for AI product strategy, corporate development, etc.) provide critical feedback and help me pressure-test ideasoffering continuity in strategic thinking even when I cant consult advisers in real time. These agents are highly personalized and fine-tuned to reflect how I think, lead, and operate. They allow me to scale myself across more conversations, decisions, and strategic inputs without sacrificing quality or consistency. Philip Smolin, cofounder and CEO, Daash Intelligence, a commerce intelligence platform As such, generative AI functions as both a research and a consulting assistant. My primary use cases are business research and strategic ideation, which are lower-frequency but high-value tasks that help shape critical business decisions and help identify competitive advantages. I also use AI for reviews of legal documents and researching HR and regulatory topics, which would otherwise require outside counsel. The evolution of executive work Im struck by how quickly many of these executives have come to rely on generative AI as collaborators (the term thought partner comes up a lot), coaches, and even as strategic partners. How are you using AI to help you manage your time or lead your company? Whats working? What isnt? Feel free to share your experiences by sending an email to stephaniemehta@mansueto.com. Id like to regularly share great insights and tips on how to use AI with this community. Read more: CEOs and AI How CEOs can lead in the age of AI agents Salesforce CEO just said AI does half of all company tasks CEOs start saying the quiet part out loud: AI will wipe out jobs 25 AI hacks high-growth founders swear by
Category:
E-Commerce
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