Submissions for our annual list will be accepted through October 2.

T okenmaxxing. Diligence Agents. Inside the world’s largest enterprises, the vocabulary has changed quite a bit in the past year. First, employees were trying to spend as much as they could in AI tokens, hell-bent on supercharging productivity with AI. Then many companies pulled back on breathless AI spending in favor of more stable usage. Meanwhile, they’ve installed automated AI agents to help with everything from sales and customer service to due diligence and cybersecurity.

All in a day’s work for a Chief Information Officer in 2026. That’s the exec at the company who calls the shots when it comes to the adoption of emerging technologies and outlining new digital strategies — a role that has only become more vital in the AI era. In 2019, Forbes began honoring the best and brightest in the field with our CIO Next list.

Six years after that first list, the CIO job is more amorphous than ever. They can be in charge of implementing new AI tools and corralling its usage. They can be responsible for cybersecurity threats exacerbated by AI. They can decide what mission-critical operations can be machine automated or not. The job is so expansive that the CIO title isn’t even a requirement to be considered for this list. In the past, we’ve honored Chief Technology Officers, Chief B2B Officers, Chief Digital Officers, Chief Information Security Officers and more.

Forbes is seeking honorees that have led ambitious innovations that have resulted in real impacts at their companies. Past listees include Gary Brantley, CIO of the NFL, who deployed AI-driven optical tracking tech on the field, to help refs make fairer calls and allow the game to flow better. Then there’s Keith Credendio, CIO of Macy’s, who launched a digital marketplace for third-party sellers on the websites of Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s. Lastly, there’s Curt Garner, Chief Strategy and Technology Officer of Chipotle, who implemented an HR assistant called Avo Cado, which cut overall hiring time for restaurant managers by 75%.

Do you know someone setting the bar as a CIO or in a related title and role? Feel free to nominate yourself as well. Past honorees are also free to re-apply, if it’s been three or more years since first appearing on the list. We also ask that nominees work at companies with valuations or market caps of $100 million or above.

The deadline to submit all nominations for the list is 5 p.m. Eastern time on October 2.