Joining other honorees such as Anthropic, Chipotle, American Express, and many others
Fast Company today announced its eighth annual Best Workplaces for Innovators list, recognizing businesses that are creating cultures where innovation can thrive at every level. Lenovo earned a spot as a finalist in both the Best Workplaces for Innovators for AI, Automation, and Machine Learning Excellence as well as the Best Workplaces for Innovators in North America for its Lenovo was recognised for creating a workplace where innovation thrives at every level, combining employee-led AI initiatives, strong technical talent development, and sustained investment in research and development to turn bold ideas into meaningful business and societal impact
The 2026 Best Workplaces for Innovators list recognizes 100 companies across industries such as entertainment, biotech, consumer packaged goods, marketing, education, and healthcare. To be considered, applicants detailed their investment in innovation, internal programs, and company culture. Fast Company’s editors evaluated each application and conducted extensive research to develop a score for each company. A distinguished panel of judges then reviewed the top-rated companies to determine the final honorees.
“AI innovation is not driven by technology alone. It depends on people with the curiosity to explore, the judgement to understand context and the intellectual bravery to challenge an answer rather than simply accept it. Lenovo is a great place for AI innovators because our teams can work across disciplines and across the full technology stack, turning new ideas into practical applications at global scale. This recognition reflects a culture where human insight and AI complement each other to create progress,” said Tolga Kurtoglu, Chief Technology Officer, Lenovo.
One example of Lenovo’s teams turning ambitious ideas into useful technology is Lenovo Qira, a new personal AI system designed to work continuously across PCs, smartphones and emerging AI-native devices. Rather than functioning as another AI assistant, Qira acts as a persistent personal AI that maintains context across devices, understands a user’s goals and activities, and intelligently selects the right AI model for the task at hand by considering factors such as the user’s intent, the complexity of the request, privacy requirements, available data and the computing resources available at that moment.
Today, Lenovo’s AI innovators are also delivering measurable business impact. AI-related revenue grew 60% year on year and accounted for 35% of total group revenue in Q1.
In addition, over the past year, Lenovo expanded its global AI capabilities with new Lenovo AI Technology Centre sites in London, Edinburgh and Silicon Valley, and launched a Digital Trust Lab focused on AI security across devices, edge and embedded environments.
“The most innovative workplaces don’t simply ask their employees to come up with great ideas; they create the conditions that make great ideas possible,” says Brendan Vaughan, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “This year’s honorees understand that innovation is ultimately a cultural commitment that requires empowering people to think differently, take risks, and turn ideas into actions. We’re proud to recognize the companies and executives who are leading by example.”
The full list of honorees is available at https://www.fastcompany.com/best-workplaces-for-innovators/list.
The Fast Company Best Workplaces for Innovators issue (Fall 2026) is available online now and will hit newsstands on September 22.
Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is along with fellow business publication Inc. For more information, please visit fastcompany.com
Lenovo is a US$83 billion revenue global technology powerhouse, ranked #153 in the Fortune Global 500, and serving millions of customers every day in 180 markets. Guided by its vision of “Smarter Technology for All”, Lenovo is executing a Hybrid AI strategy that spans Personal AI – one personal AI, multiple devices; and Enterprise AI – helping customers turn data into insights and value. This strategy is delivered through the Group’s commitment to world-class innovation and a full-stack AI portfolio, including devices (PCs, workstations, smartphones, tablets, accessories), infrastructure solutions (server, storage, edge, high performance computing and software defined infrastructure), as well as software, solutions, and services. With a global footprint spanning more than 20 research and development locations and a global supply chain that includes more than 30 manufacturing sites across 11 markets, Lenovo is widely recognized for its operational excellence. Lenovo is listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange under Lenovo Group Limited (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY). Learn more at www.lenovo.com and follow the latest news in our newsroom.
