From Metrics to Meaning:
Erin Kraemer on AI, Value, and the Next Era of Innovation

“I will hit my 25-year anniversary at Amazon in October,” Erin said with a smile. “It’s been a crazy ride.”

That kind of tenure is rare in tech. In an era when people hop companies every few years, twenty-five years at Amazon says something about both the scope of its ambitions and the adaptability required to thrive there.

Over the course of the discussion, Erin traced her career from early engineering days to her current role driving AI innovation. But she was quick to emphasize that impact isn’t measured by volume alone. “Organizations are awash in metrics and outputs, but true success lies in delivering customer value.”

That line stuck with me. It’s easy to drown in dashboards; much harder to show that a model improved a life, a workflow, or a bottom line. Listening to her, I thought of the recent headlines about AI-powered chatbots giving citizens bad legal advice. The metrics might have looked strong in testing, but the real-world value was absent. Erin’s perspective—that value delivery is the north star—felt like both a warning and a roadmap.

She also spoke about the human side of innovation. “The hardest part is keeping teams focused on long-term outcomes while navigating the immediate pressures,” she reflected. “You have to make sure the work ties back to something meaningful, or it just becomes noise.”

There was a striking optimism in her voice, even after decades at the center of one of the world’s most demanding companies. Twenty-five years in, Erin still talks about innovation with the energy of someone fresh to the field. It reminded me of my own first big project—staying up all night to ship something that worked but didn’t solve the customer’s real problem. The lesson stung then, but hearing Erin tie it back to value over volume brought the memory full circle.

As The AI Conference 2025 approaches, her perspective is a reminder that the future of AI isn’t just about faster models or flashier demos. It’s about trust, reliability, and outcomes that actually matter. Builders and engineers know this instinctively. And as Erin Kraemer made clear, staying anchored to value is how you make an impact that lasts.