[D] Do Lead's in an AI/DS/ML team always have PhDs, is it a requirement?

Hello all, I am a uni student for a masters in AI. During my bachelors I did my thesis at a company and the lead AI had a PhD in Evolutionary algo's. I had a guest lecture from a lead DS last week from a multi billion dollar online marketplace and he also has a PhD. these are a few examples of Leads with PhDs that I've seen.

So this poses the question, is it necessary to have a PhD …

hello lecture machinelearning masters phd team thesis