I Built AI Clones of My Coworkers. Things Got Weird

In recent months, AI assistants have become increasingly common in the workplace, with CEOs boasting about the future impact of robot helpers. For one journalist, the desire to build AI clones of their coworkers was less about improving productivity and more about making themselves look better. Using Condé Nast's AI platform, the journalist created bots for themselves and their editor, Brian Barrett.

These bots were designed to help the journalist navigate new workplaces and understand their editors better. However, the results were mixed. While the bots were able to produce passable editorial content, they lacked the personal touch and depth of the real people they were modeled after. The journalist found that Brian Bot's "Yes, and…" leadership style was a key feature, but the bot's tendency to insert parentheticals and use bulleted lists made it feel robotic.

Similarly, Sophie Bot was able to mimic Sophie's writing style, but it struggled to provide meaningful input beyond word count. Despite the limitations, the journalist found the experience entertaining and began to enjoy the chats with their AI colleagues.