One of the world’s largest automakers globally, Toyota is recognized for its Toyota Production System and culture of continuous improvement. The company has long set standards in efficiency and innovation. Today, that same DNA is fueling its ambitious adoption of AI across every aspect of its operations — from customer experience to manufacturing and beyond.

In this final installment of the conversation, Brian Kursar, Group Vice President and Head of Enterprise AI at Toyota Motor North America, speaks with Lance Walter, CMO of Prophecy, about bringing leaders, employees, and partners along for the AI journey — showing them the value, resetting expectations, and building the trust needed to scale responsibly.

In part 1, Kursar explored Toyota’s AI adoption journey, bridging generational knowledge gaps, and why responsible data practices are the bedrock of AI innovation. The second part expanded on how Toyota is broadening its definition of data and scaling responsible AI across a global enterprise.

Immersing leaders in AI possibilities

When Toyota’s CEO asked Kursar to explain how AI could be applied in the business, he knew he had to make the potential tangible.

“One of the things that resonated with our top executives was when we created an AI Immersion Day,” he recalls. “We got all the executives in the room and had different booths where every project we were working on with AI could be drilled down. It was like our concept of the ‘genba,’ meaning the source in Japanese. Executives could touch, feel, and ask questions about what we were doing.”

Departments ranging from dealer solutions to customer relations and manufacturing showcased prototypes. The impact was immediate.

“The light bulb went off when people realized, wait, you can do this,” says Kursar. “Something as simple as a technician using natural language to ask, ‘How do I replace this part on this vehicle?’ and getting the answer in seconds showed productivity gains. After that event, my inbox overflowed with people wanting to do projects.”

The success was so strong that Toyota is repeating the initiative this year, expanding it to the entire company.

Prioritizing value through business context

To Kursar, assessing AI value starts with business-first thinking. “It all starts with understanding the problem you’re trying to solve, what people are doing today, and pairing business experts with AI engineers,” he explains. “In a few hours, we can map out high-effort, high-reward projects, as well as the low-hanging fruit. Once people see what’s possible, the light bulbs go off.”

This practical framing is essential for adoption. “You have to put it in context — what can help productivity, what can be automated, and what frees people up for higher-value work. Once you remove mundane, repetitive tasks, people get inspired.”

Toyota has also built internal tools like ToyotaGPT, an enterprise-grade, secure version of ChatGPT. “We worked closely with cybersecurity to make it possible for people to use confidential data safely,” says Kursar. “The curiosity across the company is enormous.”

Resetting expectations and overcoming fear

Kursar stresses that education is key to navigating both hype and fear.

“You have people who think AI will replace entire teams cheaply and instantly, but they don’t see the engineering behind the scenes—data pipelines, ML engineering, constant updates,” he notes. “On the other side, you have people who are hesitant, worried AI will replace their jobs.”

Toyota’s approach is rooted in its philosophy of respect for people. “We want people to understand AI is their partner, not their replacement. It’s there to augment intelligence and efficiency, not remove the human from the loop. Once people see that, they get excited to embrace the technology.”

A responsible path forward

Asked about what peers should do next, Kursar’s answer is clear: start with trust and alignment.

“If you’re just starting, you’ve got to align with your cybersecurity group. I will never be successful unless I have cybersecurity, privacy, compliance, and legal at my side,” he emphasizes.

Toyota has learned from early challenges. “We started off when hallucinations were happening almost daily, and it made AI almost not worth using. But as the technology matured, and as we added guardrails, we gained trust. Transparency with our legal and compliance teams was key.”

Kursar believes AI is a once-in-a-generation shift. “Honestly, I haven’t been this excited about technology since the internet. First it was big data, now it’s AI — and I believe this can truly change everything.”

CDO Magazine appreciates Brian Kursar for sharing his insights with our global community.