By Leesa Hill, Partner, Team Effectiveness and Head of DEIB
Artificial Intelligence is in the headlines (again), but not for the reasons you might think. With recent political debates over so-called “woke AI,” the conversation has shifted from innovation and productivity to regulation, oversight, and even cultural identity. While the noise can feel distracting, there are important lessons here for leaders and teams navigating uncertainty and change.
Silver Linings: Conversations We Might Not Have Had
Controversies like this, however polarizing, push important questions into the spotlight:
- Who gets to decide what’s “neutral”? The debate is sparking overdue discussions about bias, fairness, and transparency in technology.
- What safeguards are necessary? Calls for oversight may accelerate the development of consistent, accountable frameworks for how AI is trained and deployed.
- How does culture shape tech and vice versa? These moments remind us that AI isn’t built in a vacuum. It reflects the values, blind spots, and priorities of the humans behind it.
For leaders, the silver lining is that we’re being nudged into conversations we might otherwise avoid – conversations about ethics, inclusion, and accountability.
The Cons: Noise, Polarization, and Distrust
Of course, there’s another side. These debates can:
- Create division within organizations, as employees and leaders navigate different views on what “woke” even means.
- Slow innovation if fear of regulation or political backlash overshadows curiosity and experimentation.
- Erode trust in both technology and leadership if people feel agendas are driving decisions more than facts.
For teams, this can translate into confusion, distraction, and fatigue especially if leaders aren’t clear about where the organization stands.
What It Teaches Us About Team Health
At LEAD3R, we talk often about the hallmarks of healthy teams: resilience, openness, accountability, and shared purpose. The “Woke AI” debate highlights how fragile these dynamics can become when external pressures spark uncertainty.
Leaders can model team health by:
- Acknowledging complexity instead of pretending issues are binary.
- Creating space for dialogue where different perspectives can be expressed without fear.
- Focusing on principles – like fairness, clarity, and integrity – rather than chasing buzzwords.
At LEAD3R’s Healthy Team Summit in Boston this October, leaders will come together to explore how to make resilience, openness, and shared purpose more than just buzzwords. This experiential gathering is designed to help teams become more human in the way they work, connect, and thrive. Through immersive experiences like the Teams Playground and Human Library, attendees will step off the sidelines and into meaningful dialogue, testing new approaches they can take back to every team they’re part of, inside and outside of work.
And because healthy teams are powered by both people and smart tools, the Summit will also showcase how technology can amplify human connection. With Playground Partners like Aktivo Labs, blending science and wellbeing, and Arist, transforming how teams learn in the flow of work, participants will experience firsthand how innovation and humanity can come together to build stronger, more resilient teams.
The journey kicks off with the Team Leader Accelerator, an optional pre-Summit intensive where leaders gain a personalized leadership effectiveness profile, hands-on coaching practices, and proven strategies to strengthen team trust, energy, and performance. It’s a chance to sharpen your leadership edge and then apply those insights immediately within the Healthy Team Summit experience.
Because at the end of the day, while artificial intelligence will continue to evolve, it’s human intelligence, our ability to listen, adapt, and lead with purpose that defines team health.
Check out some relevant The Future of Teamwork podcast episodes!
- Episode 152: Future-Proofing Teams Through Psychological Safety with Nogol Madani
- Episode 151: How Great Leaders Build Teams, Earn Trust, and Inspire with Greg Hulsizer
- Episode 150: AI Teammates for Smarter Hiring & Stronger Teams with Scott Morris
- Episode 147: How Candor and Commitment Build Better Teams with Dan Tocchini
- Episode 78: Finding Trust and Clarity in Teams with Cali Ressler
- Episode 75: Cultivating Team Resilience and Empowerment with Rachel Llanes
