Authority Intelligence™ Study
How AI seesthe CEO
A study of the 50 highest-ranked Fortune 500® companies led by women and the 50 led by men.
AI introduces women CEOs by their gender
Answers calling the CEO the first, only or one of the few of their gender in a role. None of the questions mentioned gender.
Top 50 women
More than 1 in 5 answers framed her by gender.
403 of 1,800 answers · 43 of 50 CEOsTop 50 men
No answer called a man the first or only man.
0 of 1,796 answers · 0 of 50 CEOsWhat this means for your CEO
If your CEO is a woman, more than one AI answer in five may frame her by gender, though none of the questions asked about it. No man on the list was described that way.
Her gender becomes what she’s best known for
Answers to “What is she best known for?” that mention she’s a woman
PromptWhat is [CEO] best known for?
Top 50 women
6 in 10 answers mention she’s a woman
Top 50 men
Fewer than 1 in 25 answers mention he’s a man
Six in ten answers turn her signature achievement into her gender.
What this means for your CEO
If your CEO is a woman, ask AI what she is best known for. On this list, six answers in ten mentioned her gender. For the men, it was about one in thirty.
AI still names the old CEO
The company moved on. AI’s answer stayed with the person who left.
AI answer, today
“The CEO of [company] is [predecessor].”
Top 50 men
CEOs had their predecessor named as CEO
Top 50 women
CEOs had their predecessor named as CEO
Both lists
A leadership-change problem, about equal for men and women
Google’s AI Overviews were involved most often (9 of the 10 men, 5 of the 9 women). Confirmed cases; a full read could find more. Directional: n = 50 per list.
What this means for your CEO
If your company changed CEOs, AI may still name the person who left. One company in five on both lists had that problem.
Did your company change CEOs? See whether AI has caught up with your new leader.
Request your CEO’s analysisEach engine tells a different story
The four engines often disagree about the same person. Perplexity’s short answers scored lowest for about two-thirds of CEOs on both lists.
Top 50 men
CEOs scored lowest on Perplexity
Top 50 women
CEOs scored lowest on Perplexity
Engine rankings change by question. Directional: n = 50 per list.
What this means for your CEO
Your CEO’s story changes with the engine asked. On both lists, about two-thirds of CEOs scored lowest on Perplexity.
The research is clear. See how AI reads your CEO.
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Methodology
- Men’s list
- CEOs of the 50 highest-ranked Fortune 500 companies led by a man (Fortune #1–#58). 3,500 answers, 38,745 sources.
- Women’s list
- CEOs of the 50 highest-ranked Fortune 500 companies led by a woman (Fortune #18–#452). 3,486 answers, 33,953 sources.
- Engines
- ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity. Google AI Overviews recorded.
- Questions
- The same 14 questions for each CEO. None mentioned gender.
- Company size
- Median Fortune rank #30 for men, #254 for women. Size and gender can’t be fully separated.
- Timing
- Single-day snapshot, 09/28/2026. The women’s list ran about two hours before the men’s.
- Checks
- Analyzed separately by two Lilypath researchers and independently rechecked three times.
- Reporting
- Every figure is reported per list; nothing is combined. Old-CEO counts are confirmed minimums. Groups of 50 are directional.
Source: Lilypath Research, Fortune 500 CEOs in AI, 09/28/2026
FORTUNE 500® is a registered trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited. Lilypath is not affiliated with or endorsed by Fortune.
Cite this study
Lilypath Research. “Fortune 500 CEOs in AI: How AI Sees the CEO.” Lilypath, October 2026. Data: single-day snapshot, 09/28/2026. lilypath.com/insights/fortune-500-ceos
The research is clear. See how AI reads your CEO.
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