Update, July 12: This innovation sparked a lot of conversation and questions that have no answers yet. We look forward to continuing to work with our customers on the responsible use of AI, but will not further pursue digital workers in the product.
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Six months ago, I began my Lattice journey with you all. I could not have imagined how meaningful this journey would be and how much we’d accomplish together. The rate of product innovation and the amount of Lattice love from our community are at an all-time high. I’m filled with gratitude to work with such talented people, support incredible customers, and be a part of such a vibrant community.
As we look to the future, it’s clear that we’re at the dawn of a new age of technology with AI. In my three decades in tech, I've witnessed huge shifts with the internet, cloud, and mobile technology. But none of those changes were as rapid or profound as AI and its societal implications. AI is transforming the workforce, not just as a tool but as an entity we work alongside with. We’re seeing AI personas like Devin the engineer, Harvey the lawyer, Einstein the service agent, and Piper the sales agent enter the workforce and become our colleagues.
When we asked our Resources for Humans community of more than 22,000 HR leaders representing over 3 million employees about their plan for digital workers, over half told us they were already planning to hire them.
This evolution in AI brings both opportunities and challenges. With clear eyes, the idea of AI employees, or “digital workers,'' is not an entirely comfortable one. The inevitable arrival of these digital workers raises important questions about their integration, measurement, and impact on human jobs. And many of those questions are without clear answers or precedence.
What does it mean to hire a digital worker? How are they onboarded? How are they measured? What does this mean for my job? For the future jobs of our children? Will they share our values, or is that anthropomorphism of AI? (And if you didn’t know what anthropomorphism means, that makes two of us. I had to look it up and struggle to pronounce it.)
We are learning in real time and facing an ever-growing list of hard questions and challenges that we must navigate.
At Lattice, we’re committed to leading the way in the responsible employment of AI. We can’t sit idly by and leave our customers to figure things out on their own.
We need to employ AI as responsibly as we employ people, and to empower everyone to thrive working together. We must navigate the rise of the digital worker with transparency, accountability, and the success of people at the center.
We are here to redefine and simplify HR tech and to empower people teams as strategic leaders in the age of AI. We see and understand that the future workforce requires an open, fully-integrated HR platform with AI at the core and built for people and AI to thrive together.
Today Lattice is making AI history. We will be the first to give digital workers official employee records in Lattice. Digital workers will be securely onboarded, trained, and assigned goals, performance metrics, appropriate systems access, and even a manager. Just as any person would be.
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This marks a significant moment in the evolution of AI technology – the moment when the idea of an “AI employee” moves from concept to reality in a system and into an org chart.
Our new Lattice people platform is one integrated platform for all of your HR data, processes, and engagement. Lattice gives you everything you need with fully AI-powered onboarding, performance, compensation, payroll, growth, benefits, content. No retrofits, no refactors, just real AI at the core. And the incredible new ability to see people thriving, working together with AI as digital workers which are now native in Lattice.
We are breaking ground, bending minds, and leaning into learning. It will take a lot of courage, vulnerability, and humility to get all of this right. And we are not in this alone.
I am spending a lot of time connecting with and learning from members of academia and policy, such as Business Higher Education Forum (BHEF), HR Policy Association (HRPA) and various universities.
The partnership between business, academia and policy will need to be strong as the workforce of the future takes shape. I’m heading to D.C. in September to speak at the HRPA’s 2024 Washington Policy Conference to discuss workforce policy in the age of AI, and will continue to have Lattice lead in this very important conversation.
Together, we can lead our customers, industry, and society into the future. Let’s start today. I look forward to the journey and to celebrating innovation at Lattiverse later this year.
💜 Sarah
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