Kathleen Grace Is one of TIME's 2026 Executives of the Year: Tech and Data - Time Magazine

Kathleen Grace has spent her first months as Lionsgate’s first chief AI officer turning the most controversial new technology into something filmmakers can actually use. Appointed in February, Grace—the first Hollywood studio executive to hold that particular title—has expanded access to Lionsgate’s partnership with AI firm Runway, first inked in 2024, and is testing generative AI across development, marketing, post-production and visual effects.

Grace doesn’t want to automate filmmaking, but reckons it can help deliver shots or fixes that would otherwise be too expensive, slow, or difficult to execute. Lionsgate is also exploring whether its back catalogue can find new audiences through formats enabled by generative video, audio, and interactive tools. 

“I’m not here to make people use AI,” Grace says. “My favorite part of my job is that I help people see possibilities.” Within a year, Grace aims to have “a few very public examples” showing where those possibilities can genuinely improve creative work.