# Red Lobster’s 37-Year-Old CEO Wants AI to Help Pull Off the Chain’s Biggest Comeback Yet > Source: > Published: 2026-06-19 20:00:41+00:00 [Red Lobster](https://www.complex.com/tag/red-lobster) is looking to artificial intelligence—and a healthy dose of nostalgia—as CEO Damola Adamolekun pursues what he calls “the greatest comeback in the history of the restaurant industry.” The 37-year-old executive recently revealed that he wants Red Lobster to become “the most AI-forward restaurant company that exists,” telling the [ Black Money Tree](https://www.youtube.com/@TheBlackMoneyTree/featured) podcast that his age gives him an edge in embracing emerging technology. “One of the advantages of being young is that I understand the technology pretty well,” Adamolekun said, adding that he regularly uses AI in his own work. The AI push comes nearly two years after Adamolekun took over the struggling seafood chain following its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Before officially becoming CEO in September 2024, the former P.F. Chang’s chief worked with Fortress Investment Group as it prepared to acquire the company. During that period, he quietly visited restaurants around the country to assess the state of the business firsthand. “It’s very easy for staff to disengage and check out,” Adamolekun said. “But they hadn’t. I saw people that’d been there 10, 20, 30, 40 years. There was a lot of love for the brand. What they needed was a north star.” That emotional attachment has become central to Red Lobster’s recovery strategy. Adamolekun admitted he initially underestimated how deeply customers connected with the brand. “I underestimated the impact of these emotional connections, which became a guiding principle in our decision-making, from menu changes to ambiance redesigns,” he said. Under his leadership, the company has leaned heavily into fan favorites. Hush Puppies and popcorn shrimp returned to menus, seafood boils became a social media hit, and the chain introduced value-focused promotions, happy-hour specials, and $20 lobster rolls. One thing Adamolekun has repeatedly vowed not to tamper with? “These Cheddar Bay biscuits,” he said in a commercial. “We got that right the first time.” The turnaround effort follows years of instability. [Red Lobster cycled through five CEOs in five years and entered bankruptcy in 2024 after mounting debt, costly lease obligations stemming from a 2014 real estate deal, and losses tied in part to the infamous Endless Shrimp promotion](https://www.complex.com/life/a/bernadette-giacomazzo/red-lobster-unlimited-shrimp-bankruptcy). The company has continued to close underperforming locations—[including its oldest continuously operating restaurant in Tallahassee, after 56 years](https://www.complex.com/life/a/bernadette-giacomazzo/red-lobster-tallahassee-closure), [and its flagship store in New York City’s Times Square after 23 years](https://www.complex.com/life/a/treyalston/red-lobster-times-square-closing-june-14)—but Adamolekun insists the rebuild is gaining momentum. At a town hall with roughly 30,000 employees, he laid out his vision in unmistakable terms. “We’re going to execute the greatest comeback in the history of the restaurant industry,” he said.