AI and The Quest for Human Empathy
Workhuman’s director of product strategy Adam Basilio has explained that despite Human Intelligence’s ability to assist colleagues in producing appreciative messages, he does not want AI writing what they term “recognition moments” between colleagues. Bruce Daisley, workplace culture consultant and former Twitter executive, has expressed a similar fear of losing the human element of heartfelt actions and recognition.
Whether AI bots could reach those emotional capacities is uncertain. On the one hand, a recent University of Chicago Law School study pitted AI against experienced human judges in judicial decision-making. The study found that AI judges based their decisions on legal precedent, even when faced with emotional or sympathetic candidates.
However, a Harvard Business School study found that AI was able to effectively emulate the benefits of human collaboration in group settings, with respondents working with AI reporting “positive emotional responses.”
We could be far away from AI bots sitting behind HR desks, but with the speed at which AI is moving, it may not be as far away as we believe.
