As companies are investing in AI coaches, AI therapists, AI assistants, AI everything, the jury is still out on whether or not these investments will pay off. In fact, a recent study found that 95% of AI pilots have failed.
Why?
The research from MIT reveals “flawed enterprise integration.” Whereas “generic tools like ChatGPT excel for individuals because of their flexibility, they stall in enterprise use since they don’t learn from or adapt to workflows.”
So your job may be safe yet!
As a speaker, emcee, and facilitator, my job is to show up in person, and bring my human to work.
Here’s what I do as a keynote speaker that can’t be replaced by technology:
- Show up, physically: Until we have autonomous physical robots or holographic projections, that’s something that AI can’t do! By the way, one of the greatest gifts you can give your team right now is to be fully present as a leader.
- Read the room: I gauge how people show up on that day (e.g. What happened in the news? Did the company announce layoffs?). I look people in the eye to see what resonates. Did the joke land? Did they just experience a breakthrough? Nothing beats in-person connection.
- Share case studies and examples so leaders know they’re not alone: I find true stories and anecdotes (that other humans share with me directly), not just ones that you find via search (and don’t even get me started on the AI hallucinations!).
In other words, I show up and share my message as a human leader through the lens of vulnerability, empathy, and experimentation.
And bringing speakers in IRL is good for business. When people feel connected to others, engagement, wellbeing, and productivity all increase (here’s my speaker reel if you haven’t had a chance to see it).
All that to say, in this AI-dominated world, we have to ask ourselves how our humanity makes us UN-automatable.
Look at your role and everything you do—what’s unique to you? What do you do in work and in life that could never be replaced by AI? How are you uniquely vulnerable? Empathic?
That’s your superhuman power. Lean into it!
8/26/25