“Move fast and break things” was once the rallying cry of innovation. Then came the broken things — and the lawsuits.

Now, in the age of artificial intelligence, every leadership team faces a familiar question dressed in new complexity: do we race ahead and learn in public, or slow down and build guardrails first?

The argument for speed is seductive

AI rewards first movers with data, brand authority, and momentum. The sooner you deploy, the sooner you discover what works — and what doesn’t. In markets where attention is scarce and adoption snowballs, hesitation feels like obsolescence. The logic goes: if we don’t do it, our competitors will.

But the case for safety is equally compelling.

A single AI-generated error can erode years of trust. A hallucinated number in a financial report, a biased recommendation in recruitment, a privacy slip in customer data — each one leaves a scar. In a digital world where reputation travels faster than facts, prudence looks like wisdom.

Speed brings learning, safety preserves legitimacy

The paradox is that both are right — and neither scales without the other.

What distinguishes a brave company from a reckless one isn’t how fast it moves, but where it believes forgiveness lives.

In consumer tech, a faulty recommendation might be forgiven overnight. In healthcare or finance, it can end careers. The forgiveness threshold — how much imperfection your stakeholders tolerate — is the invisible line that determines your optimal pace.

That line isn’t fixed. It shifts with context, culture, and competence. A team that deeply understands its data, risks, and regulatory landscape can run faster because it knows where the cliffs are. A team that doesn’t — should walk.

In that sense, speed is a privilege earned through understanding.

Leaders often think of AI risk as a compliance problem

In truth, it’s a judgment problem.

Governance can’t replace instinct. Checklists can’t substitute for moral clarity. The best leaders aren’t those who always play it safe or those who always go first — but those who sense when to accelerate and when to hit the brakes.

Perhaps “move fast and break things” never really died. It just grew up. Because in AI, the question isn’t whether you’ll make mistakes. You will. The question is whether the world will forgive you when you do — and whether you’ll deserve it.

Or?

Joachim Cronquist is a strategic AI advisor and founder of Cronquist AI. He helps business leaders turn AI into business clarity and measurable results.