Lionsgate has named Kathleen Grace its first-ever Chief AI Officer, a strategic move to push the studio’s artificial intelligence efforts forward while calming the industry's deep-seated fears over the technology's impact on creative IP.

• The right resume: Grace’s background seems tailor-made for the role, joining from Vermillio, an AI platform built specifically to help creators license and protect their work. As Chief Strategy Officer there, she focused on systems for tracking and monetizing creative IP within AI models, experience that directly addresses Hollywood's core anxieties.

• The guardrail imperative: Her appointment builds on a 2024 deal with research firm Runway to train a proprietary AI model on the studio's content library. According to a recent earnings call reported by Variety, CEO Jon Feltheimer stressed his support for AI is contingent on having "appropriate guardrails" in place, a task that now falls squarely to Grace.

Lionsgate's AI strategy began with its partnership with Runway, an initiative to train a proprietary AI model using the studio's vast content library. Grace's core challenge now is to prove that AI can be an effective tool for creativity and efficiency without devaluing the intellectual property and talent that underpins the entire industry. Her success—or failure—will be a key signal for the rest of Hollywood.