[lesostep]

>> If you don't technically need to pay "the CEO" a salary, could you run e.g. a grocery store in a dying town

You probably couldn't. I have seen a lot of small town stores that are run and operated by a single person. If somebody could run a business like that for a decent wage, they would be.

Adding AI to the mix on a high level position (for a single employee, who is the actual owner!) wouldn't help, it's just token burning. AI can find a sale on bananas, but a person at the counter can take feedback from the actual customers, and stock based in that.