Philip Jorzik, Anil Yigit, Dominik K. Kanbach, Sascha Kraus, Marina Dabic

• Research in artificial intelligence and business model innovation is flourishing. Nevertheless, the current discussion lacks an overarching understanding of, and thus has not sufficiently addressed, the interface between artificial intelligence-enabled business model innovation and the critical role of top management. Although a paradigm shift affecting top management is already occurring, extant management literature is limited, especially in terms of primary research. Accordingly, this study explores how top management can encourage and facilitate artificial intelligence-enabled business model innovation. We utilized an inductive approach and conducted semistructured interviews with 47 practitioners to develop a grounded theory. The developed framework consists of five top management competencies and eight top management roles. Overall, our study contributes to research in business model innovation theory, revealing that top management requires a specific skill set to carry out their roles and fulfill expectations.