CEO Power and Sustainable Innovation Resilience: The Influence of Corporate Reputation and AI Adoption

With the rapid acceleration of technological revolutions and industrial upgrading, firms are increasingly exposed to environmental uncertainty, intensified competition, and continuous technological disruption. Under such conditions, sustainable corporate development depends not only on innovation performance, but on the ability to sustain innovation activities over time. Innovation resilience, defined as the capacity to withstand shocks, reconfigure resources, and maintain innovation momentum, therefore represents a critical foundation of corporate sustainability. Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed firms from 2009 to 2024, this study examines how CEO power shapes sustainable innovation resilience. Drawing on upper echelons theory and signaling theory, we investigate the direct effect of CEO power, the mediating role of corporate reputation, and the moderating role of artificial intelligence adoption. Fixed-effects regression results indicate that CEO power is positively associated with sustainable innovation resilience, and this relationship is partially mediated by corporate reputation. Furthermore, artificial intelligence adoption strengthens the positive association between CEO power and innovation resilience. By linking executive governance, reputational mechanisms, and digital transformation to sustained innovation capacity, this study advances understanding of the organizational foundations of corporate sustainability under uncertainty. The findings provide theoretical insights and managerial implications for designing governance structures that support long-term sustainable development.