Good Disruption: AI Companions

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines companion as “one that accompanies another” and “one that keeps company with another”. From physical training and therapy to friendships and personal assistance, people are increasingly looking to AI companions for support.

Still, there is something missing. These AI companions are designed to support the individual but what is the impact on broader society? Don’t we as humans get something out of supporting each other?

Mike and Yael talk with Allison Pugh, author of The Last Human Job: The Work of Connecting in a Disconnected World, whose research suggests that people working in more empathetic jobs find purpose in motivating others and that two-way human connection creates social trust and feelings of belonging not easily replaced by AI.

Allison Pugh is a Professor of Sociology at Johns Hopkins University and the 2024-25 Vice President of the American Sociological Association. At the time of this recording, Allison was a Professor of Sociology and Chair of the Department of Women, Gender and Sexuality at the University of Virginia.

For more episodes, visit: https://gooddisruption.podbean.com/

About the Expert

Yael Grushka-Cockayne

Senior Associate Dean for Professional Degree Programs; Altec Styslinger Foundation Bicentennial Professor of Business Administration

Grushka-Cockayne’s research and teaching activities focus on decision analysis, forecasting, project management and behavioral decision-making.

As an expert in the area of project management, she has served as a consultant to international firms in the aerospace and transportation industries. She is the secretary/treasurer of INFORMS Decision Analysis Society, a U.Va. Excellence in Diversity fellow and member the Project Management Institute.

B.Sc., Ben-Gurion University; M.Sc., London School of Economics; M.Res., Ph.D., London Business School

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About the Expert

Michael Lenox

Special Adviser for the Dean; Tayloe Murphy Professor of Business Administration

Lenox’s expertise is in the domain of technology strategy and policy. He studies the role of innovation in helping a business succeed. In particular, he explores the sourcing of external knowledge by firms and this practice’s impact on a company’s innovation strategy. Lenox has a longstanding interest in the interface between business strategy and public policy as it relates to the natural environment; his work explores firm strategies and nontraditional public policies that have the potential to drive green innovation and entrepreneurship.

In 2013, Lenox co-authored The Strategist’s Toolkit with Darden Professor Jared Harris. His latest book,

Lenox is a prolific author; his most recent book, Strategy in the Digital Age: Mastering Digital Transformation, examines how digital technologies and services enable the creation of innovative products and services, as well as identifying new competitive positions.

B.S., M.S., University of Virginia; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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