AutoNation unifies tech and AI roles with new chief from Avis

AutoNation, one of the largest automotive dealership networks in the United States, announced on Thursday (1st) Ravi Simhambhatla as Chief Technology and AI Officer, effective the same date. He will oversee technology, data science, and the company's artificial intelligence agenda under a single role, according to the company's statement.

The structure is as important as the title. By combining technology and AI under one executive, AutoNation is taking the opposite path of companies that created a separate Chief AI Officer from the CTO. This decision determines who will be accountable for the performance of AI agents when they move from the pilot phase to the sales floor, the service department, and financing.

An Operations-Focused Resume, Not a Laboratory One

Simhambhatla joins with over 30 years in corporate technology, according to the company statement. His most recent position was as executive vice president and Chief Digital and Innovation Officer at Avis Budget Group, where he was responsible for global technology, product, data, engineering, infrastructure, and cybersecurity, leading the adoption of AI and connected fleet technology. Previously, he served as general manager at Google Cloud, advising companies on cloud, data, and AI projects, and held senior technology positions at United Airlines, covering commercial systems, digital commerce, loyalty, and revenue management.

His early career includes roles at Aer Lingus as CTO, Tesla as vice president of IT, and Virgin America as CIO. Nearly all of his career has been in companies with high operational intensity in physical assets, fleet, and customer service, with tight margins. He represents the profile of someone who has already had to demonstrate technology returns on the balance sheet, not just in presentations.

The Size of the Challenge

AutoNation closed 2025 with revenue of $27.6 billion, a 3% increase over the previous year, according to the results released by the company. The business extends beyond the sale of new cars: it includes used vehicles, body shop services, parts, auctions, and a captive finance company, each with its own systems and data.

This structure is exactly the type of operation where AI promises more but delivers with more friction. Pricing of used vehicles, consumer credit, service scheduling, and post-sale support depend on data scattered across dealership, manufacturer, and finance systems. An executive responsible for both technology and AI cannot blame the infrastructure for the delays of the agents, nor the agents for the cost of the infrastructure.

Two Competing Governance Models

AutoNation's approach contrasts with that of HSBC. In March, the bank announced its first Chief AI Officer, effective April 1, and promoted David Rice, then director of operations for corporate and institutional banking, to the position. In the same reorganization, it expanded the scope of CTO Mario Shamtani, who oversaw modernizing core platforms, building an internal AI platform with access to various models, and major technology partnerships. At HSBC, AI gained its own owner; the technical foundation remained with another.

Deloitte in the UK followed a similar path to HSBC. In June, it appointed Hayley McKelvey as its first Chief AI Officer, responsible for AI strategy across both client services and internal operations, alongside a separate managing director for Technology and Transformation.

The two models address different issues. The separate role works when AI needs to navigate business areas with their own budgets and priorities, as in a global bank or in a professional services firm with dozens of practices. The unified role makes more sense when the bottleneck is the integration between legacy systems and new agents, and when the company doesn’t want two chains of command competing for the same technology budget.

The cost of the unified model shows up in its scope. In a dealership network, technology includes store management systems, and the sector is aware of the risk: in 2024, an attack on software supplier CDK Global shut down dealership operations nationwide. The same role responsible for expanding AI agents is accountable for the infrastructure they will access. This concentrates accountability but also the burden.

For consultancies selling AI programs to retailers and service networks, this appointment changes the interlocutor: at AutoNation, the person deciding on AI is the same executive responsible for cloud, data, and integration. Proposals that separate "AI strategy" from "systems modernization" in distinct contracts, with different sponsors, lose meaning in such a structure. In companies adopting HSBC's model, the same separation remains the natural route for sales.