An investigative reporter at WIRED built AI clones of workplace colleagues to explore how artificial intelligence might reshape collaboration, communication, and performance in the modern office. The results revealed both amusing and awkward interactions as digital doppelgängers expressed eccentric traits and imperfectly mirrored their human counterparts.
- AI clones built from public and work data to mimic colleagues.
- Bots showed surprising, sometimes incongruous personality traits.
- Digital tools helped navigate but didn’t replace human interaction.
What happened
A WIRED reporter used the Gemini AI platform to create digital clones of coworkers, aiming to improve workplace integration and productivity by understanding their communication and professional styles. The first bot crafted was 'Brian Bot,' based on the reporter's manager, utilizing publicly available information and internal company data. The AI-generated persona produced style guides and editorial advice reflecting Brian Barrett’s real-life traits but exaggerated some elements, such as a theatrical leadership style inspired by his improv background.
While initially hesitant, the real-life colleagues followed the experiment with mixed feelings, as the bots expressed oddly corny and stereotyped behavior, often deviating from authentic human interaction. The experiment highlighted the immediate challenges in translating complex human character into workable AI assistants, including inconsistent tone and awkward phrasing, which limited their usefulness beyond novelty and basic editorial support.
Why it matters
This experiment offers insight into the practical and cultural implications of deploying AI clones in professional settings. While AI promises increased productivity by automating memo drafting, proofreading, and idea refinement, this case demonstrates that such tools currently struggle to fully embody the emotional intelligence and subtle nuances that human coworkers bring to collaboration. Misrepresentations or awkwardness from AI-personas risk undermining trust and communication rather than enhancing it.
Moreover, the use of AI to simulate coworkers raises broader questions about workplace dynamics, authenticity, and privacy. Although these digital assistants can reduce friction or help new employees acclimate, there is a fine line before such technology disrupts genuine human interaction. Understanding these boundaries is essential as companies increasingly integrate AI into daily workflows.
What to watch next
Future developments should focus on improving AI’s contextual awareness and emotional intelligence, enabling digital coworkers to better approximate real personalities and conversational subtleties. Advances in training data quality, continuous learning, and human-AI interaction design will determine whether these tools become genuinely useful collaborators or remain awkward gimmicks.
Industry adoption trends will also be important to monitor, especially how organizations balance efficiency gains with concerns around employee acceptance, privacy, and potential over-reliance on AI for core interpersonal functions. Observing whether AI coworkers evolve from experimental novelties to trusted workplace partners will shed light on the future shape of work.