AI and the Future of Product Development

About the Event

AI is fundamentally changing how software products are built. Development cycles are compressing. Experimentation is cheaper. Smaller teams are shipping faster than entire organizations did just a few years ago. At the same time, architectural decisions, tooling choices, and team composition matter more than ever.

For CEOs, founders, and COOs, the challenge is not learning how to code or selecting tools. The real challenge is understanding how AI changes product development at a strategic level and ensuring product and engineering teams are structured to move fast without creating long-term risk.

This private GILD gathering brings together senior company leaders for an off-the-record conversation about how product development is evolving in 2026. There are no panels, no pitches, and no surface-level theory. This is a focused room of operators comparing what is actually working inside modern product and engineering organizations.

We keep this room intentionally small and curated for leaders who own product direction, technical execution, and business outcomes.

What We Will Explore

• How AI is changing product development speed, scope, and iteration cycles
  
• What engineering leverage looks like in an AI-assisted environment
  
• How product and engineering team structures are evolving
  
• Build vs buy vs automate decisions inside product development
  
• How the role of CTOs and technical leadership is changing
  
• Common mistakes companies are making with AI in product teams
• What CEOs should be discussing with their product and engineering leaders right now

You Will Walk Away With

• A clearer understanding of how AI is reshaping product development
  
• Better questions to bring back to your CTO and product leadership team
  
• Practical insight into how high-performing teams are structuring roles and workflows
  
• A more realistic view of where AI accelerates development and where it introduces risk
  
• Context to guide product and engineering strategy decisions in 2026
• New relationships with senior technology leaders across Austin

Who Will Be in the Room

This event is reserved for senior company leaders, including:

• CEOs
  
• Founders
  
• COOs
  
• Presidents and owners of technology-driven companies
  

A curated and high-signal room, by design.

Privacy & Format

Chatham House Rules apply.
Discussion stays private. This is what unlocks candor.