This paper makes a simple argument: AI changes the interface to operations, not the underlying lifecycle. Day 0 and Day 1 work (landing zones and initial deployments) can be accelerated with copilots and code generation. However, Day 2+ operations (patching, drift remediation, incident response, cost optimization, compliance) are where most of an enterprise’s effort and risk reside. That is also where AI is least useful unless it is grounded in a trusted context (a unified infrastructure graph spanning clouds, IaC state, and security signals) and governed by policy.