AI is a Tool, Not a Replacement: Google CMO Lorraine

Lorraine Twohill, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at Google, believes that success in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) is not just about using technology but mastering fundamental human skills. She explains how relying too much on AI can weaken creativity, decision-making, and communication.

Why Strong Fundamentals Matter More Than Ever

Twohill, who leads a global marketing team of over 4,000 professionals, warns against over-dependence on AI. She points out that even before AI, poor-quality content existed, and technology alone cannot fix weak fundamentals.

“Technology sometimes becomes a crutch,” she says. Instead of depending on AI-generated content, professionals should focus on good writing, effective storytelling, and impactful messaging. Strong communication and creativity are more important than ever in a world where AI can generate information instantly.

Key Skills for Success in the AI Era

According to Twohill, certain timeless skills will set people apart in the AI-driven world:

Understanding People: The ability to predict customer behavior and create relevant content is essential.
Agility & Adaptability: Being flexible in changing environments helps professionals stay ahead.
Influencing & Persuasion: Convincing others to support your ideas will be a crucial skill.

AI may assist with tasks, but the real competitive edge lies in human intuition, creativity, and strategic thinking.

Twohill emphasizes the importance of personal responsibility, regardless of the tools used. While AI can aid content creation, the final output should still reflect the creator’s expertise.

“You may use different tools to get the work done, but you own it, and it needs to be good enough,” she explains. Professionals should not rely on AI to do the thinking for them but rather use it to enhance their own abilities.

Google Simplifying Complexity

Twohill follows a simple leadership philosophy: “Know the user, know the magic, connect the two.”

At Google, her team works on making complex products easy to understand. She believes that effective marketing should simplify technology and make it relatable to people’s daily lives.

“We take all the complexity of a big company like Google and distill it down into something that’s super simple and relatable,” she says.

Advice for Young Professionals

For young professionals, Twohill advises embracing the unexpected instead of following a fixed career path. She believes that even non-technical professionals in a tech-driven world have their own unique strengths.

She shared on LinkedIn’s “This Is Working” podcast that her journey from Europe to leading Google’s marketing was shaped by curiosity, resilience, and adaptability—not shortcuts or over-reliance on tools.