Across industries, organizations are investing heavily in AI—building impressive prototypes, validating use cases, and demonstrating clear technical potential. Yet many of these initiatives never make it beyond the proof-of-concept stage. This book tackles this widespread challenge head-on, revealing why successful demos so often fail to translate into production systems. The book shifts the focus away from models alone and toward the broader ecosystem required to operationalize AI—data ownership, governance, compliance, infrastructure, and long-term accountability. Its core objective is to help readers bridge the gap between experimentation and execution by understanding the structural and organizational barriers that stall progress. Structured as a practical guide, the book walks readers through a clear and actionable journey. It begins by defining the concept of “Proof of Concept prison” and diagnosing the root causes behind stalled AI initiatives, followed by a strategic reset that reframes how organizations should approach AI. At the heart of the book is a hands-on 90-day roadmap for building an AI operating model—from assembling the right team and laying foundational infrastructure, to productizing use cases, making go-live decisions, and scaling responsibly. The final sections focus on sustaining success through governance, change management, and adoption, while also addressing common pitfalls that lead teams back into the POC cycle. Rather than celebrating prototypes, this book equips readers with the mindset and tools needed to build AI systems that are resilient, scalable, and ready for real-world impact. What You Will Learn: Recognize early warning signs that AI initiatives will remain demos rather than become production systems Design AI initiatives backwards from production by defining operational requirements, data dependencies, governance, and accountability early Use a practical 90-day execution model to move selected lighthouse use cases into contro
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