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6 timeless attributes for succeeding in the AI era

October 18, 2026 · 40 min

Show notes

AI is making it easier for employees to work beyond their specialties and that has big implications for the future organizations of all sizes.

In this episode of The Deep View Conversations, we sit down with Bill Barton, chief operating officer at Rokt and the former leader of the Alexa team at Amazon. Rokt has gotten called out by some of the biggest tech companies in the world for its innovative use of AI inside the company.

In fact, several of them have had Rokt come and talk to their teams about how they do it. So we wanted to have Bill on the show to share those insights with a larger audience.

Barton shares how Rokt is using an internal AI fleet across software development, finance, legal, security and other functions. He explains how AI is helping blur the boundaries between roles, why the company has moved from more than a dozen job ladders to four, and what it takes to turn experimentation into everyday practice.

Other topics covered include:
• Why Bill returned to Rokt after trying retirement
• How AI is expanding the reach of generalists
• Enabling shared AI experimentation companywide
• Why fewer, more flexible systems can help teams move faster
• How Barton thinks about productivity gains and hiring
• What Google search reveals about frictionless AI
• Why more powerful tools can make it harder to step away from work

Bill also shares his six timeless attributes that can help anyone succeed in the AI era: relentlessness, resilience, rigorousness, inquisitiveness, optimism and humility.

For leaders rethinking their teams and professionals navigating changing roles, this conversation connects the possibilities of AI with the habits and judgment needed to make them useful.

Subscribe to Deep View Conversations for interviews with the leaders shaping the future of AI, business, and technology: https://tdv.transistor.fm/

And don't forget to sign up for The Deep View daily newsletter. We don’t just cover AI, we decode it. In a world flooded with hype, we deliver sharp, no-nonsense insights to keep you ahead of the curve and help you put AI to work every day: subscribe.thedeepview.com

All episodes of The Deep View: Conversations

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