Most CEOs talk about AI adoption. Few have the courage to deploy untested technology in clinical settings where lives are at stake.

When Michelle Aquilina joined MoleMap Australia and New Zealand as CEO, she found a company in financial distress suffering from an identity crisis, oscillating between the technology, healthcare and retail niches.

But she also discovered something remarkable: a proprietary AI algorithm that had been developed years earlier but remained dormant.

“I came along and thought, ‘This is the golden nugget that MoleMap has been waiting for, and that can seriously elevate early skin cancer detection,’” Aquilina recalls on CEO: Behind the Scenes. “And it required bravery and courage.”

That bravery paid off. MoleMap now operates Kāhu AI, which provides 95 percent accuracy and sensitivity in detecting potentially cancerous skin lesions.

But Aquilina’s approach wasn’t reckless innovation. She established an AI governance committee comprising independent bodies, AI experts, dermatologists, general practitioners, registered nurses and the executive team to continuously challenge the status quo.

What’s more, the AI journey revealed important limitations.

“We know that the AI is not a good reader over tattoos or within hair,” Aquilina explains. “So this is why I strongly believe that the world of AI will never take over the human element of healthcare, and it can’t, because there’s always a degree of variability.”

Research conducted across Australia and New Zealand revealed another critical insight: communities loved the concept of AI but didn’t trust it yet. This finding shaped MoleMap’s soft launch strategy, positioning Kāhu AI as a ‘second set of eyes’ rather than a replacement for clinicians.

Integrating technology and trust

The integration required more than technology. Aquilina appointed a champion, a frontline clinical worker who visited every clinic to educate staff on why Kāhu AI was being incorporated and how it would benefit both patients and clinicians.

The approach worked. Registered nurses embraced the technology immediately, recognizing that AI couldn’t ask crucial questions about how long a lesion had been present or whether it changed in sunlight.

Aquilina even brought reluctant dermatologists along by demonstrating how the technology complemented rather than competed with their expertise. Since then, the results speak for themselves: greater accuracy in diagnostics and lower excision rates.

Beyond clinical applications, MoleMap Australia and New Zealand has deployed agentic AI solutions in back-office operations. ‘Molly’, an AI voice agent, contacts potential corporate clients and converts them into warm leads. She can engage with 1,000 customers daily compared to the five a human sales representative can handle.

“And then we have our amazing team that then comes in and closes the deal,” Aquilina explains.

With her own success story clear to see, Aquilina’s advice to other CEOs is unequivocal: “Leaders most definitely need to embrace digital technology and AI. If you are not doing this today or within the short-term, you will be left behind as a leader.”

Listen to the latest episode of CEO: Behind the Scenes podcast with Michelle Aquilina on Amazon, Apple or Spotify.