The Path to Autonomous Organizations:
Obstacles and Possibilities

July 16, 2026, 5:00pm to 8:30pm
Menlo Park, CA

At our February 2026 Post-Industrial Summit, we explored the rise of Autonomous Organizations with speakers from NVIDIA, Cisco, Salesforce, OpenAI, GreyOrange, XOPS, Neo4J, Atlan, and other industry leaders.

​AI orchestration and execution of work is now widespread. The development of foundation models as well as agent platforms is progressing rapidly, with AI agents being able to operate reliably for longer periods. Emerging standards are making it possible to connect agents together across organizational boundaries. The Global Agent Economy is emerging, another topic we have covered over the past year. Soon a majority of transactions will result from AI agents helping curate products and services, negotiate terms, orchestrate delivery, and monitor satisfaction.

​In this session we will discuss the road forward, the potholes, the bridges, and what will turbo-charge progress in the next 18-24 months.

​You will learn about:

• ​Types of Autonomous Organizations

• ​Stages in the journey to Autonomous Organizations

• ​Obstacles we will face (social and technical)

• ​Workforce, customer, and supplier implications

• ​How AI agents will link organizations together

• ​What lies beyond Autonomous Organizations

Agenda

5:00 pm - Networking and refreshments
6:00 pm - Welcome to the Post-Industrial Forum

6:10 pm - Presentations
Frode L. Odegard, Founder, Post-Industrial Institute
Nitin Badjata, fmr. SVP of Solution Management, SAP

7:00 pm - Roundtable discussion
Facilitator: Blaine Mathieu, Host, Post-Industrial Forum

7:45 pm - Networking and refreshments
8:30 pm - Close

About the Post-Industrial Forum

​Based in Silicon Valley, the Post-Industrial Institute (PII) was founded by Frode Odegard in 2004. Our mission is to develop new management science, frameworks, and tools for leaders building the firms of the future.

​In 2019, we launched the Post-Industrial Forum—a community for visionary leaders who are building new pathbreaking firms or transforming leading enterprises. Members connect with peers, learn together, and apply insights to accelerate their journey.

​We share original PII research with members and invite industry experts and executives from pioneering organizations to offer their insights. The Forum hosts public events and summits, as well as member-exclusive programs delivered both in person and online through a dedicated member portal featuring exclusive content.

Speakers