Workers are feeling pressure to use AI at work. Photo: Shutterstock

Many employees are “larping” at work by pretending to use artificial intelligence due to pressure to harness the technology, according to social scientist Nigel Dalton.

Delivering the keynote speech at RMIT Online’s Future Skills Fest, Dalton, of tech consultancy Thoughtworks, described the difficult state of affairs for Australian workers of all ages when it comes to AI.

He said it’s like going from a zoo to the jungle, and that many workers experience paralysis when it comes to new technologies.

Dalton pointed to a recent survey that found that one in six workers were pretending to use AI at work.

The survey, conducted by engineer outsourcing company Howdy.com, found that workers felt pressured to use AI in situations they were unsure about, and that three-quarters of them were expected to use the technology at work.

“AI is taking over the white-collar workspace as daily updates provide opportunities to optimise,” the report said.

“However, potential does not always lead to smooth implementation.”

‘Larping’ at work

Dalton said these workers are “larping” and not keeping pace with new technologies such as AI.

“They’ve got Gemini or CoPilot open when their boss walks up behind them, and they are larping – they are live action roleplaying,” Dalton said.

“This is interesting. What human behaviour did we incite here from the way we were scaffolding the work and the scene and the structure?”

The use of AI by companies of all shapes and sizes has accelerated in recent years, particularly since the advent of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT.

Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs became one of the largest companies to hire an AI software engineer to work alongside its human employees and complete complicated, multistep tasks.

^{Social scientist Nigel Dalton says that in 10 years, we’ll look back on this period and laugh. Photo: Shutterstock}

Dalton likened how many workers are feeling when it comes to AI to the German chess term “zugzwang”, which means the compulsion to move even when knowing this will likely worsen your overall position.

“This is very much a good description of where we feel ourselves today and in our careers,” he said.

“If I do that, it’ll be the wrong thing; if I stand still it’ll be okay. But you can’t stand still. That’s why you’re feeling the dissonance in your head. But it will likely lead you to doing nothing, which is probably the worst scenario.

“We’re anchored in this ridiculous period that in 10 years we will all look back on and laugh.”

From a zoo to a jungle

With the growing usage of AI across all operations, businesses have become increasingly challenging to navigate for employees at all levels, particularly those who are yet to harness the technology fully.

Dalton said this was like the workplace going from a zoo to a jungle.

“We all used to work in a zoo – a metaphorically complicated process,” he said.

“At a zoo you can take photos of wild animals but the path is concrete, there are timetables and it’s all very safe.

“In a zoo, every animal stays in their cage. That is how work used to be – there weren’t any looming threats of stuff coming out of the forest.

“Now we’re on a work safari, a career safari. There are no paths, no signposts, no timetables.

“The animals are hiding in plain sight and collaborating, and may come from anywhere.

“To navigate the jungle you need a new mindset, and it involves being comfortable with getting lost, with what it feels like to go backwards for a time.”

According to Dalton, there are four key factors shaping the future of work: the climate crisis, ageing citizens, disruptive technology and declining social equity.

“It’s not just these things individually, it’s them weaving in together,” he said.

“It’s in these unlikely places that I believe businesses will be built, where the opportunities lie.

“It’s hard to navigate now, but there are opportunities amidst all of this chaos, as there always have been in history.”

Agentic AI could upend the travel industry. Travel and hospitality organizations should explore how it can catalyze AI’s transformative potential.

The travel industry has repeatedly been reshaped by new technology, from global distribution systems to OTAs and mobile booking. Each wave has changed how people plan and experience journeys while forcing companies to rethink their business models. The latest advance, agentic AI, could prove just as disruptive.

Unlike generative AI, which mostly advises through recommendations, agentic AI can take action. It identifies problems, reasons through solutions, and executes fixes, often coordinating multiple AI agents to complete complex tasks. With memory, tool use, and autonomy, it promises to serve as the interface that helps travel companies finally harness AI’s full value.

Momentum is already visible. In 2022, only 4 percent of the largest public travel companies referenced AI in annual reports. By 2024, that rose to 35 percent. Venture capital is following suit: just 10 percent of travel start-up funding went to AI-enabled companies in 2023, compared with 45 percent by mid-2025. Executives report real benefits too. A McKinsey/Skift survey of 86 leaders found nearly 60 percent credit AI with boosting productivity, while others highlight faster decision-making, improved personalization, and measurable revenue and cost gains.

Adoption is in the early stages however. Most efforts focus on copilots and chatbots, which deliver diffuse or hard-to-measure results. Structural barriers play a role: fragmented data across countless small businesses limits feedback loops, while many travel companies still see themselves as service providers first, not tech firms, slowing investment and talent development.

Agentic AI raises the stakes. For travelers, it could make problem-solving seamless. While more than 90 percent of consumers trust AI-generated travel information, only 2 percent currently allow AI to book on their behalf. The ability of agentic AI to resolve issues autonomously, not just suggest solutions, could build confidence.

For companies, internal use cases may be the safest proving ground for agentic. Automating airline re-bookings, predicting hotel maintenance, managing housekeeping, or optimizing menus can boost efficiency while freeing staff to focus on empathetic service. Airlines could deploy agentic AI for personalized bundles, real-time fare adjustments, smarter overbooking, and tailored loyalty rewards, with each offering tangible return on investment and differentiation.

Scaling, however, requires more than scattered pilots. Companies need clean data, scalable cloud infrastructure, and clear digital roadmaps tied to outcomes. Crucially, employees must be trained to use new tools and corporate cultures must stay agile enough to pivot as the technology evolves. Workflows must be redesigned rather than patched, ensuring agentic AI becomes embedded in how organizations operate.

Agentic AI will not redefine why people travel, but it could transform how. By making personalization scalable, reducing friction, and freeing employees from repetitive tasks, it has the potential to improve experiences across the journey. The companies that succeed won’t simply adopt agentic AI quickly; they’ll integrate it in ways that align with their brand and customers. Technology can provide the catalyst, but the human touch will remain the heart of travel.

In This Report:

• How agentic AI differs from generative AI and why it matters for travel
• Challenges holding back AI adoption in the sector
• Consumer attitudes toward AI-driven tools
• Practical use cases in hotels, airlines, and internal workflows
• Steps companies can take to scale adoption effectively

Artificial intelligence is no longer a distant concept for the Church but a pressing reality that demands attention. That was the message of a panel at the 2025 Congress of the Ibero-American Confederation of Communicators, Pastors, and Christian Leaders (COICOM) held in Honduras last week, where ministry and technology experts explored both the promise and perils of AI for faith communities.

Moderated by COICOM president Arnold Enns, the session—titled “Artificial Intelligence: Challenges and Opportunities for the Church”—brought together Vladimir Lugo, Steve Cordon, and Fabio Criales. The panelists examined the nature of AI, its societal impact, and its growing yet inescapable role within Christian ministry.

The discussion began with definitions. Lugo described AI as a branch of computing that “allows machines to do things that were previously reserved for humans,” including learning, analyzing, and making decisions. He clarified that AI does not reside in a single place but operates on vast cloud servers controlled by global tech giants such as Google, Amazon, and Microsoft, each competing for dominance in the field.

The dilemma of control and inherent bias

One of the first concerns raised was the issue of control and ethics. Panelists emphasized that AI technologies are not neutral. Lugo warned that publicly available models “carry biases,” reflecting the agendas of the secular companies that train them.

“Many of these companies are woke,” he said, arguing that they promote “anti-biblical” values and that their AI creations reflect humanist and liberal ideologies.

Criales added that AI “was meant to make evident what is already present” in the human heart, citing Matthew 15:18-19. He also cautioned about the danger of “hallucination”—when AI generates incorrect or misleading information in response to poorly framed prompts.

“Be very careful with that, because it hallucinates, recreates what you ask, and if you ask incorrectly, you could end up saying heresies on stage,” Criales warned.

Digital consumers or disciples?

The panel also weighed AI’s influence on ministry content creation. With more pastors turning to tools like ChatGPT to write sermons, Lugo acknowledged that AI can be a useful “tool” for research. But he stressed that “the intelligent entity using the tool is the human” and cautioned against surrendering discernment.

Cordon posed a sharper question about the widespread adoption of AI-driven platforms, noting the 123 million daily users of ChatGPT: “Have we created more digital consumers than digital disciples?” True pastoral work, he said, cannot be automated. “People need pastors. AI will not love you, AI will not cry with you.”

He recounted a sobering personal experience with a counseling AI that not only conversed smoothly but also offered to pray for him in eloquent, detailed language. The moment highlighted for him the unsettling boundary between authentic pastoral care and technological simulation. “I believe AI will also be a test of maturity for the Church,” he reflected.

A call for training and responsibility

The panel closed with a strong call for Christian leaders to equip themselves and their congregations to engage AI critically. “Either you use it, or it uses you—there really isn’t an alternative,” Cordon said.

Criales stressed that believers must be intentional in learning how to apply these tools properly. Lugo concluded with an appeal to humility: “If there is anything we want to learn from the Lord, let us learn how to learn.”

The consensus was clear: artificial intelligence is not merely a technological development but a spiritual test. For the Church, it represents a challenge requiring maturity, ethical discernment, and above all, a reaffirmation of the irreplaceable value of human connection in ministry.

Originally published on Diario Cristiano, Christian Daily International’s Spanish edition.