Even if you love your job, it’s likely there are parts of it you could live without. Tidying up your inbox, responding to basic enquiries, managing your calendar. It’s possible you’re already utilising tools to help you manage these menial tasks. But imagine if you had a colleague to take on all of those mundane parts of your job, so you don’t even have to think about them. Well, there’s an AI for that.
The Rise of AI
Thanks to the simplicity and accessibility of GenAI applications, AI has become a part of everyday life for millions of us. It’s become so embedded in everyday functions that many of us aren’t even aware when we’re using AI. This great democratisation of artificial intelligence has mostly sparked two points of view. In the first camp, lovers of all things AI are delegating and automating at every turn. They have an AI for everything and profess how this approach saves them time, money and makes them more productive. On the other side, are the doomsday lot, seeing this boom in GenAI as the proof they needed that AI is here to steal our jobs – and perhaps our entire way of life – sooner rather than later. A lot of people actually fall within both camps, aware of impending doom but choosing to make hay while the sun shines.
AI: Friend, Foe or Colleague?
The first mindset positions AI as not much more than a tool, a means to an end. While the second mindset presents AI as a kind of otherworldly menace. But what if we’re missing something in the middle? How do things change when we shine a light on the human side of AI?
Combining artificial intelligence with cutting edge 3D holographic technology to create a smart digital avatar helps us visualise this human side of AI. AI companions, like Capgemini’s ELLEM, are already revolutionising how we do business. Taking on roles like a production foreman, a manufacturing trainer, a hotel concierge, a sales assistant or even a police officer, digital avatars are indeed ‘stealing’ our jobs. But the real value comes from the right approach to human-machine collaboration. If digital avatars can take on the most menial, repetitive, basic jobs that humans currently do, that frees us up to work on more creative roles, focused on problem-solving and innovation.
In our latest webinar, Daniela Rittmeier, Head of Capgemini’s Generative AI Accelerator (and the ‘mother’ of ELLEM) shared how, scary as it might seem, celebrating the ‘human’ capabilities of AI and deploying digital avatars into various jobs can boost employee efficiency and satisfaction. These digital avatars are designed to assist – not replace – human workers, serving as a co-pilot that frees employees to apply their unique talents and expertise. Maybe it’s time we start thinking of AI not as simply a tool, nor as the bringer of the end times but as…well, a colleague.
The Future of Work: A Human-AI Collaboration
It’s clear that people are underestimating the value of the human side of AI. When asked what primary outcome they’d like to achieve with digital avatars, only 11% of our webinar attendees selected ‘reducing workload on human staff’, and it was the lowest scoring option. Only 3% were concerned about the avatars replacing human roles. But viewing digital avatars as employees / colleagues, with defined job descriptions could be gamechanging for so many businesses. This is, of course, no small feat and is not without challenges. How do you foster true collaboration between human employees and AI? How do you infuse empathy and avoid inauthenticity when using avatars in customer-facing roles? How do you overcome cultural and linguistic barriers to ensure successful global adoption? As with all things AI, there are many considerations businesses must address in order to integrate this technology ethically and effectively.
To discover how companies are embedding digital avatars as employees successfully, and what that might look like for your business, watch the replay of our webinar ‘The Human Side of AI’.
