I run an executive community, so read this with the appropriate grain of salt. But I get asked the same question often enough that it is worth writing down. With so many options now, how does a senior leader actually choose one?

Here is how I would think about it if I were on the other side of the table.

Most executive AI communities fall into three groups.

The first is the broad peer network that has added AI programming. YPO, Vistage, and organizations like them have run CEO peer groups for decades and now layer AI content on top. Good if you want a general leadership network and AI is one topic among many.

The second is the large summit or conference. Hundreds or thousands of people in a room for stage programming. Good for scale and for hearing headline speakers. Less good if what you want is a real conversation.

The third is the small, invitation-only room. Fewer people, off the record, built around peer exchange rather than stage time. This is the category my own community, Open Future Forum, sits in.

Three questions sort the field quickly.

Who is actually in the room? A community is only as good as the people who show up. Ask how members are selected, and whether the room is filtered for seniority or open to anyone who pays.

What is the format? Panels and dinners do different jobs. A panel is for learning. A dinner is for trust. The best communities run both.

What does it cost, and who pays? Some communities run on member dues. Others are free to qualifying executives and paid for by sponsors. Neither is wrong, but it shapes who ends up in the room.

I wrote a longer side-by-side of the main options, including how Open Future Forum compares to YPO, Hampton, Pavilion and the rest, here: the best AI executive communities. It names names and lays out the tradeoffs.

The honest answer is that the right community depends on the seat you sit in and what you want from the room. A CFO and a CISO are not looking for the same thing. Start there, and the choice gets simple.

Murray Newlands is the founder of Open Future Forum, a Silicon Valley executive community, and a Partner at IA Seed Ventures.