From hype to humanity: Driving more value with human-centered AI

Fast Company

18-07-2025

In boardrooms and backroom labs, the promise of AI has morphed into modern mythology—a digital elixir promising to revolutionize industries and workforces, eliminate inefficiency, and empower businesses and humans like never before. As investments increase and headlines dominate, we find ourselves swept up in a collective fever dream—a hype cycle where AI is the universal solution to our most significant problems.
According to Forrester's AI research, 67% of AI decision-makers say their organization plans to increase AI investment. With the advent of agentic AI, there seems to be even more enthusiasm about implementing it. In a June 2025 press release, Gartner reported that a poll of 3,400 IT professionals revealed that 19% said that their organization had made significant investments in agentic AI, 42% reported conservative investments, 8% had made no investments, and the remaining 31% were unsure about agentic AI investments in their organization.
Beneath the hype lies a more sobering reality. Gartner analysts also predicted that 40% of agentic AI projects will be cancelled by 2027 due to costs, unclear business value, or inadequate controls. At Punchcut, we've led companies through several pivotal moments in tech evolution to achieve meaningful ROI. Our latest report, FutureView 2025: From Hype to Humanity, examines the gap between unrealistic AI expectations and results. It's a guide to ensure real drivers of revenue and profit, user satisfaction, and competitive advantage define AI initiatives.
The AI revolution isn't solely about groundbreaking technology; it's fundamentally about shaping more profound and useful connections between humans and machines. By grounding AI work in human-centric principles, product teams can craft experiences that break free from the hype and deliver genuine, lasting benefits.
A central insight from our work with business leaders is that AI objectives defined by human-centered needs deliver the strongest results. Real value hinges on AI's ability to enrich personal and professional activities and enable human potential.
Amidst the frenzy, companies must move from hype to reality to pragmatically steer projects toward human-centered implementations. Only then will it drive loyalty and ultimate revenue growth.
FOUR PRINCIPLES OF HIGH-VALUE AI
Through our work, we've identified four key AI strategies for successful AI initiatives. AI implementations that follow these 'lanes' can deliver measurable returns rapidly while producing sustainable business benefits.
1. SHARED AUTONOMY
The idea of completely autonomous systems is intriguing, but most users desire a feeling of control. Our findings indicate that people prefer a collaborative approach where autonomy is shared between humans and machines.
Recently, we worked with a global automotive company to build an advanced in-vehicle AI agent for assisted driving. Primary testing revealed a strong preference for optional agent support over full automation. Drivers felt much more comfortable with the ability to selectively delegate tasks to AI rather than relinquishing control. This research showed that interfaces should respond to varying levels of user engagement and trust.
Business Pivot:
• Conduct thorough autonomy user research to uncover where automation adds value and where it can be disempowering.
• Offer AI features that allow for cooperative user overrides and guidance, preserving a meaningful sense of agency.
2. AUTHENTIC RELATABILITY
'Humanizing' AI doesn't require crafting a digital clone. 'Human-like' AI captures headlines, but we've found that lifelike avatars, or agents that take on overly anthropomorphic qualities, can unsettle users. Instead, AI that focuses on clarity, transparency, and helpfulness fosters trust.
In a study focused on AI companionship, we found that users consistently favored simple, utility-driven interactions over high-fidelity visual character designs. Abstract representations like voice or text were seen as more relatable than literal characters. We found that authentic, meaningful engagement stems more from tone and usefulness than from visual realism.
• Resist the temptation for hyperrealism with agents. Instead, craft relatable interactions.
• Use relationship design principles to shape AI interactions that feel authentic and empathetic, and build trust through utility, not appearance.
3. NATURAL IMMERSION
Amid the buzz about cool new hardware devices and spatial computing, true immersion is often more about how experiences fit into everyday contexts. AI should naturally engage multiple senses—visual, auditory, and tactile—without requiring the latest trendy device.
In our work with a leading consumer electronics brand, we prototyped several spatial computing concepts that enhanced desktop experiences without the need for headsets or external devices. Prototypes showed that by embedding 3D views and AI-driven interactions directly into familiar devices and workflows, we could create more intuitive and seamless forms of digital immersion.
Business Pivot:
• Invest in multi-modal AI interaction that engages sensory and spatial inputs to create more intuitive, natural experiences.
• Integrate AI within existing products and ecosystems to amplify value at familiar touchpoints before pursuing entirely new solutions.
4. MEANINGFUL IMPACT
The allure of fast AI deployment can overshadow a well-defined strategy. In the race to compete, many AI solutions have focused more on technological novelty than measurable substance. A lasting impact requires aligning AI initiatives with user needs to ensure solutions lead to quantifiable business outcomes.
We observed development teams assuming AI would provide value at every stage in a user's workflow while working with a large consumer technology provider with a major AI platform. But this assumption resulted in an overloaded feature set with decreased adoption. By utilizing a human behavior value matrix, we helped developers identify a few signature moments that delivered higher, more measurable value. Also, by prototyping imagined scenarios, we were able to validate the viability of new AI within their software.
Business Pivot:
• Invest in proper research and design, focusing on long-term strategy and growth over short-term gains.
• Prioritize use cases with meaningful ROI and user satisfaction over flashy features. Start small, prove value, and build on success.
Within the AI hype cycle, where technological novelty can overshadow substance, there's an opportunity for companies to rise above the noise. The long-term potential for AI to shape industries and society is profound, yet we are in a stage where investments outweigh returns, and rapid experimentation is the norm.
Now is the time for companies to step back and employ strategies that prioritize value. By embracing human-centered design principles of autonomy, relatability, immersion, and impact, companies can create AI experiences that transcend novelty and truly enhance human experiences while driving measurable ROI and business growth.