Imagine you’re on a third date with someone you really like. You’ve taken her to your favorite restaurant – the one you take your mom to when she’s in town.
But something has changed. Instead of Louis, your usual Sommelier who helps you pick the right wine every time, there’s a little black AI device on the table.
The specs say the AI is better at picking the perfect wine. But it’s not quite the same, is it? It’s no longer theater. It’s no longer the experience you were hoping to share.
Why does this feel wrong? Because humans can see you. Really see you. Not just pattern-match you or spit out empathetic-sounding platitudes based on statistical algorithms. Humans can initiate, not just respond. Think, not just parrot. Get genuinely invested in your success – not just pretend to be.
Think of the doctor who shares your struggle with the medical bureaucracy because she’s dealing with it herself. Or the soccer coach who feels your pain at missing the game-winning goal because the same thing happened to him when he was in high school. Or the Platoon Leader who holds open and frank conversations with his team about troubling news headlines because he’s troubled by them himself.
We’re hyper-social primates who want and need meaningful contact with our fellow human beings. We haven’t evolved to substitute real connection with machines. Some geeks in Google’s basement may disagree, but nobody’s really convinced.
If the AI futurists are right, human interaction is destined to become a luxury good. Yes, you can have Louis pick your wine for you, but now you pay extra. A LOT extra.
In this new AI epoch, we all know the trend. More AI integration. More automated experiences. More transactional interactions. More efficiency. More speed. More shallow insights floating around the internet, less depth, and less connection.
The teams that will stand out are the ones with the courage to buck the trend. Because once the shiny new thing stops being shiny, the world will go back to wanting the things it’s wanted for 3,000 years. Connection. Empathy. Humanity.
Some things never change. |
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