In an AI-driven economy, the future of the firm depends on building a “cognitive loop” between people and digital systems — one where human judgment and AI capabilities continuously compound.

Satya Nadella introduces the idea of *human capital* (knowledge, judgment, relationships, ingenuity, and pattern recognition) and token capital(the firm’s proprietary AI capabilities and learned systems). Contrary to common fears, he argues that human capital does not become less valuable as AI advances — it becomes more valuable when paired with owned AI systems.