What does meaning actually look like in a world where machines increasingly mediate our conversations? Are computers able to interpret consciousness?

Spike Jonze’s Her remains a modern cinematic masterpiece, often cited when we talk about interacting with large language models, and for good reason. The emotions Joaquin Phoenix’s character experiences toward his operating system come from something deeper than technology. It’s about what feels human. Scarlett Johansson’s voice carries consideration, cadence, hesitation, warmth and some of the very imperfections that make him (and us, as viewers) forget her artificial nature.

A figure which lingers with anyone weighing the output of AI is this: 52% of readers and consumers who recognise that something is written directly by a computer will switch their attention off. That insight from Bynder’s report matters, especially in fields where the goal is to elicit emotion. The world produces content endlessly. What audiences keep searching for is connection.

Machines write, analyse, and predict with relative precision. Humans bring something else to the table. We create meaning. AI can detect sentiment, whereas we can sense sincerity. A good communicator picks up on what the data overlooks, i.e., the difference between polite agreement and genuine buy-in or when a message fits the context it is meant for and when it needs a different approach based on who’s in the room. This fusion of empathy, intellect, and ethics is what I think of as the human algorithm, the way information becomes influence.

Subtle choices

The good news is that a lot of communicators already seem to be responding to this, and not just with sweeping statements about “authenticity.”  We’re seeing subtle choices that put people back into the frame.

One example is brands branching out into platforms where dialogue feels more natural. Sprout Social’s 2025 roundup of standout social strategies points to companies showing up in community-driven channels, including running their own subreddits and hosting AMAs with executives and employees. Another approach is behind-the-scenes content that provides insight into how the work gets done, from the people behind the product to the everyday processes. The intent is simple. It gives messages a sense of life, and it builds trust because it feels human.

That same instinct shows up outside brand marketing too. In an era where content can be generated at scale, there is growing value in work that feels authored, lived, and specific.

In Dubai, our city, you can see this shift even in the public sector, with a markedly different approach to how cities are generally “packaged” around the world. One clear example is Erth Dubai, launched in February 2025 by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai. It invites citizens and residents to record personal stories, memories, and milestones that reflect life in the city across its various phases of development, with the aim of building a comprehensive digital archive accessible to researchers and the public.

A human-led AI layer

Sometimes, human can even look slightly counterintuitive. In one campaign we supported for Arabian Automobiles Company around the Nissan Kicks launch, artificial intelligence featured heavily at the very start through a set of AI-created virtual personalities. They hosted a podcast-style format and helped introduce the KICKS Starters competition to Gen Z, encouraging university students to take part for a chance at a STEM scholarship. What made it work was that the AI layer was still human-led. The personalities were created with intention, and the podcast scripts were written by people, shaped around real humour, cultural cues, and the kind of tone younger audiences recognise immediately.

For now, AI remains an instrument, an amplifier of intention. Whether it ever moves toward sentience or total ubiquity, as Elon Musk and others predict, remains uncertain. What is evident is that technology tends to magnify the instincts of those who wield it with discernment. Used well, it can sharpen clarity and elevate sound reasoning. Used carelessly, it starts to flatten voice and makes everything sound the same.

That is why credibility is the defining metric of modern communication. Visibility can be bought, but trust must be earned. People want to feel that there is a person behind the message who means it and will stand by it. At the same time, expectations are shifting quickly. The same public that disengages from computer-written material will still accept AI when it delivers something reliable and useful. That paradox mirrors everyday experience. Many still hesitate at the self-service checkout, preferring the assurance of a human exchange.

Automation is untangling how we live and express ourselves. The value lies less in whether these machines have “souls” and more in what they reveal about ours. We build tools to simplify complexity and extend our capacity. The challenge now is scale. To keep creativity human-sized, and to keep technology in service of emotion and understanding, not efficiency for its own sake. Real innovation doesn’t just make things faster. It makes things clearer.

Communication, at its most refined, is empathy disguised as strategy. It’s the bridge between information and intuition, precision and purpose. As a communication advisory rooted in intelligence, we are convinced that the most intelligent system remains the human spirit: curious, ethical, and alive to meaning.