Satya Nadella reinvented Microsoft once. Can he do it again in the AI era?

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at the Microsoft AI Tour event in Munich, Germany, on Feb. 25, 2026.Sven Hoppe | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesOn a sunny day in Seattle in late September, about 50 executives representing large Microsoft customers had a rare opportunity. They could ask anything of CEO Satya Nadella. One attendee wanted to know what Microsoft could do to help companies adapt to the artificial intelligence age. Nadella responded by emphasizing the importance of "diffusion inside the enterprise," meaning AI tools need to be widely deployed."Like all things, change is always bottom up, top down, and middle up," said Nadella, sporting a tight black crewneck and dark gray slacks, as he strode across the stage at the downtown Paccar Pavilion. For the 59-year-old Nadella, who's spent over half his life at Microsoft, the gathering landed at a pivotal moment, as the software giant tries to magnify its role in the AI boom. Of late, Nadella has been inserting himself more into the AI discourse, posting on X last month about the need for "deliberate pacing" in model development, and days later addressing safety fears at the All-In Summit in Los Angeles.Despite its almost $4 ...