San Diego – September 13, 2026 -- Only 9% of 1,000 C-suite executives surveyed by the Return on AI Institute report realizing significant value from generative AI, a gap Scaled Agile, Inc. (SAI) aims to address at its SAFe & AI Summit San Diego, running September 14-18 at the Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center.
Survey data exposes an operating-model failure, not a technology gap
SAI, provider of the SAFe business agility framework, points to the Return on AI Institute findings as evidence that the barrier to AI ROI is organizational rather than technical. The company argues that enterprises lack the operating models needed to govern AI initiatives and convert pilot projects into measurable business outcomes.
Andrew Sales headlines with AI-Native SAFe operating model
SAFe chief methodologist and Scaled Agile chief product officer Andrew Sales will deliver the summit's main keynote, "AI-Native SAFe, The Operating Model for the Age of AI." Sales will argue that the bottleneck for enterprises has shifted from building AI systems faster to validating their value responsibly, with Lean-Agile principles providing the structural foundation for scaling AI deployments.
Additional keynotes address funding and leadership structures
Lindsay Wirthlin of the Red Cross, "Tech Humanist" author Kate O'Neill, and "Project to Product" author Mik Kersten will also headline. Kersten will preview material from his upcoming book "Output to Outcome," examining how AI systems now generate output volumes that exceed what traditional Fortune 500 operating models were built to absorb.
Case studies draw from Barclays, AWS, and Collins Aerospace deployments
Sessions will feature organizations already implementing SAFe and AI-Native SAFe, including AWS, Collins Aerospace, Barclays, Benco Dental, Navy Federal Credit Union, Panasonic, the VA Office of Clinical Informatics, and VW Credit. The two-day program combines customer case studies, partner showcases, and hands-on labs where attendees build an AI-enabled workflow and draft a 90-day AI roadmap.
Pre- and post-conference training extends the program to five days
A partner day, SAFe Practice Consultant Trainer (SPCT) master class, and preconference training take place September 14, ahead of the main two-day summit. Post-conference training runs September 17-18, giving attendees additional time to develop prioritized implementation plans.
"AI-Native SAFe provides a framework for AI transformation built on proven Agile principles, and the SAFe & AI Summit provides hands-on experience, practical application, and content focused on achieving business outcomes from AI such as increased speed, improved quality, and significant ROI," said Andrew Sales.