Last week, Just Capital brought together some of the world’s most influential business leaders, philanthropists, and government officials at Nasdaq’s MarketSite for our 2026 Best of American Business Celebration — supported by sponsors Accenture, Bank of America, and many more.
The day was defined by candor with seven fireside chats moderated by leading media figures. The conversations occurred under Chatham House rules, so we cannot directly attribute quotes, but we’re sharing two themes that dominated the discussions.
One refrain we heard repeatedly was the importance of keeping humans in charge of AI systems. One organization said their ethos was “humans in the lead” not just humans in the loop. It’s a deceptively simple idea, but in a world racing to automate, it’s a radical one.
Speakers also emphasized that neither government nor business alone cannot absorb the disruption that’s coming. Addressing AI’s impact on workers will require public private partnership to fundamentally reimagine how value is defined, rewarded, and shared One speaker even mentioned how dealing with this impact will go beyond workforce issues, and will force us to rethink how America handles things like health insurance, childcare infrastructure, and the social safety net at large.
There was a pointed message to CEOs in the room about the choice before them: use these tools to help people do more and better work, or use them simply to reduce headcount. One speaker referenced NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang’s recent statement that leaders who laid off employees were “lacking imagination” in how AI tools could transform employee work, and it was clear the moral weight of how to handle this transition will define how history judges this generation of business leaders.On an optimistic note, there was general agreement that, with the right guardrails and widespread access, AI will provide significant value to society through innovations in healthcare, engineering, and education. Our latest polling shows that the American public agrees. Many leaders also believed that academia and nonprofits lack access to frontier models, which presents a structural problem that deprives these sectors of many of the technology’s gains if this continues.
On an optimistic note, there was general agreement that, with the right guardrails and widespread access, AI will provide significant value to society through innovations in healthcare, engineering, and education. Our latest polling shows that the American public agrees. Many leaders also believed that academia and nonprofits lack access to frontier models, which presents a structural problem that deprives these sectors of many of the technology’s gains if this continues.
If AI was the operational challenge in the room, the state of capitalism was the philosophical one.
Several leaders spoke with striking frankness about the erosion of public trust across the spectrum: in business, in capitalism, in the accessibility of the American dream, and in “brand America” abroad. It was clear that those in attendance were worried about the possibility of AI exacerbating these issues.
This concern was echoed from leaders across sectors – corporate leaders, investors, philanthropists, and policymakers. The idea that the very foundations on which markets depend is at risk was not an outlying perspective. It was a common thesis of the night.
There was also a belief that specific sectors were more vulnerable than others. One speaker drew a direct parallel between the major social media platform liability cases moving through the courts today and the first successful lawsuits against big tobacco, a flashpoint where public opinion decisively turns on one of the largest sectors of the American economy.
Leaders agreed that all of these issues could present an economic and social crisis soon.
In the end, the event left us debating profound questions: What kind of future do we want? How do we in this room shape it?
We at Just Capital believe in the power of markets and the private sector to advance society and build a better future for more people at scale. In an AI-powered future, the best of American business will continue to do just that.
Thank you to our insightful speakers and moderators, and thank you again to our sponsors!
