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AI in the Boardroom: Readiness, Responsibility and the Role of Leadership

A Masterclass with Vivek Khindria
Event Location
Boston, TBD
Event Date
April 21, 2026
Event Time
6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
About this event

As AI reshapes business strategy and risk, every leader, not just the technologists, must learn to guide the conversation.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a future consideration – it’s a boardroom imperative. Yet for many organizations, the challenge isn’t technical capability, but leadership readiness: how to communicate risk and opportunity in a language that boards understand, and how to build governance frameworks that balance innovation with accountability.

Join the Blend Boston community for an interactive session with Vivek Khindria, President of Risk Embrace and former technology and cyber leader at BMO, CIBC, Bell, Loblaw, and McMaster University. This spans the verticals of Financial Services, Telecommunications, Retail, Pharmacy and Transportation.

With over 30 years of global experience, Vivek is now helping boards and C-suites translate complex technological change into strategic action, Vivek will explore how leaders can shape responsible AI adoption across their organizations.

Together, we’ll examine how to turn AI from a point of uncertainty into a source of competitive and ethical strength—where risk, resilience, and responsibility coexist.

Our speakers
Vivek Khindria
President of Risk Embrace; Former Technology and Cyber Leader at BMO, CIBC, Bell, Loblaw, and McMaster University.

Vivek Khindria, C.Dir, CISSP, CISM, is President of Risk Embrace and a former technology and cyber leader at McMaster University, BMO, CIBC, Bell, and Loblaw. Vivek has deep practical experience in advising boards and C-suites on resilience, cybersecurity, AI, and quantum risk, translating technical choices into business outcomes. Vivek represented Canada on the Information Security Forum advisory council and was one of the key founders for the Canadian Cyber Threat Exchange (CCTX) to enable cross-industry threat intelligence sharing.

Over a 30+ year career, he has led large transformations spanning autonomous vehicles, AI applications, data centres, enterprise cyber programs, and trading floors. Vivek has worked across eight countries, with talks and collaborations in 20+. He continues to guide organizations on cyber strategy, AI governance, quantum readiness, network optimization, and third-party risk, while supporting universities, startups, and nonprofits.

Key themes & discussion topics

Boardroom readiness: How to frame AI discussions that inform, not overwhelm, your board.

Governance by design: Building oversight models that fit your organization’s risk appetite and maturity.

Leadership Responsibility: What does sovereign AI mean and is it even possible?

The evolving role of the executive: Why every leader, not just the CIO or CISO, must engage with AI strategy.

Event agenda
01
Registration & networking

6:00 – 6:45 PM

02
Masterclass & discussion

6:45 – 7:30 PM

03
Dinner

7:30 – 8:45 PM

04
Event wrap-up, reflection & networking

8:45 – 9:00 PM

Why should you attend?

You want to confidently lead AI conversations with your board and C-suite, translating technical risk and opportunity into strategic, business-relevant language that drives informed decision-making.

Learn how to balance innovation with accountability, understanding what effective AI governance looks like in practice – not as a compliance exercise, but as a leadership capability.

You want to move AI out of the technology silo, equipping yourself to guide conversations across the organization so risk, resilience, and responsibility are shared, not delegated.

Gain practical insight from real boardroom experience, drawing on decades of leadership across financial services, telecoms, retail, and academia to turn AI from uncertainty into competitive and ethical advantage.

Event Organizer
Emily Osgood
Venue
Event Location Light
Boston, TBD
Boston
United States
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