When Maria Goyal has a question at work, her colleagues often respond with the same suggestion: ask the AI assistant. The 25-year-old marketing professional in Colorado has watched AI become embedded in nearly every part of her job over the past year. Instead of feeling empowered, she says the shift leaves her isolated, and she now hesitates to approach more experienced coworkers for help or brainstorming.

“It prevents me from learning more in depth rather than just having a robot do it for me,” she explained in a recent interview.

Her experience reflects a broader trend. A collection of recent studies indicates that AI is changing how people communicate in the workplace, often replacing everyday exchanges between humans. The data arrives as companies accelerate their adoption of generative AI tools, from chatbots to autonomous agents that draft emails, summarize meetings, and make decisions.

What the data shows

In a July survey from a cognitive assessment platform, roughly three-quarters of AI users said they ask chatbots questions instead of consulting colleagues. That means 74% of workers are now treating AI as their first stop for answers. In May, a workplace survey found that Gen Z workers are 12 times more likely than Gen X workers to feel “completely disconnected” from their coworkers. Another report, released in July, found that 68% of workers would rather ask a chatbot an obvious question than bother a coworker.

These numbers arrive at a moment when loneliness is already widespread. Research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about one in three adults feels lonely. In the workplace, about one in five employees worldwide reports feeling lonely. Remote work and hybrid schedules have added to the distance between team members, and the shift toward digital-first communication has made spontaneous conversations rarer.

Experts warn that the workforce may be sleepwalking into a less connected, less mentor-rich environment. “AI presents a really big opportunity, but it also presents a challenge in that we absolutely need to ensure that we surround ourselves with other human beings, and as leaders, we need to create opportunity for more human connection,” said Adam Mendler, a leadership expert and instructor at the University of California, Los Angeles.

The hidden value of asking a colleague

The loss of the simple act of asking a colleague a question may seem minor, but organizational researchers say those exchanges carry more information than the answer itself. Asking a colleague can reveal who holds expertise, how another person handles uncertainty, and which colleagues are willing to help. AI can preserve the practical answer, but it strips away much of that social context.

Constance Noonan Hadley, founder and chief scientist at the Institute for Life at Work, has studied employee loneliness, burnout, and team dynamics for more than two decades. She says the act of asking a question, receiving a friendly response, and returning the favor builds the trust that holds teams together. Those micro-interactions also help people learn the unwritten rules of the organization, from how to handle ambiguity to which projects matter most.

For junior employees, the implications are especially serious. Goyal worries she no longer has opportunities to show what she knows, and that she is not learning as deeply from coworkers as she could. She believes people underestimate how much those informal mentoring moments matter. “I think it's an underestimation of how much those moments matter, and it's hard to convince people they matter until they don't have them anymore,” Hadley said.

Stalling in professional growth can create anxiety among workers who begin to feel their own expertise is fragile and possibly easy to replace with AI. If more questions go to AI instead of experienced colleagues, organizations may need to rethink how they support workplace learning. The shift also has an isolating effect on team leaders, who lose visibility into what their reports are working on and how they think.

Managers may also miss early signals of burnout, confusion, or conflict when employees stop asking for help. In many organizations, the questions an employee asks are a gauge of their confidence and progress. AI removes that signal.

The financial cost of loneliness

Some leaders may dismiss workplace connection as too soft a concern. But researchers have found direct financial consequences to disengagement and loneliness. Lonely employees are more likely to miss work, leave their jobs, generate higher healthcare costs, and be less productive. According to Gallup, low employee engagement cost the global economy roughly $10 trillion in lost productivity last year. If AI reduces spontaneous interactions, organizations could inadvertently increase disengagement and erode workplace culture.

Employee engagement is not just a feeling; it is a measurable driver of performance. Engaged workers are more likely to stay with their organization, recommend their employer, and put in discretionary effort. When employees stop interacting with colleagues, they lose the sense of belonging that underpins engagement. Over time, that can lead to a fragmented, transactional workplace where people only communicate when absolutely necessary.

The benefits of AI

There are also benefits to turning to AI. The same surveys that show employees feel less connected also show they feel more productive and self-sufficient. In one study, 71% of respondents said they felt more self-sufficient, and 62% said they felt more comfortable making decisions on their own compared to a year earlier. Another survey found that 86% of AI users felt more productive. In July, a business software report found that remote workers using agentic AI were 35% more likely than onsite workers to experience a dip in imposter syndrome and mental load.

For Allison Clair, founder and president of a communications firm, AI does make her feel more isolated at times, but it also provides real advantages. Her team often works asynchronously, and clients are spread across time zones. She frequently turns to AI to “hash things out” before approaching a colleague or client. She also appreciates the way AI can help trim unnecessary meetings and status updates. “I do find myself a lot of times just turning to AI to be like, ‘Hey, just hash this out with me,’” she said.

The key, she says, is being intentional about not letting AI replace every human interaction. Clair schedules at least one in-person client visit per week and makes time to talk casually with her team about their weekends and their weeks. “Work is also relationships and people, and so I don't think there's any real replacing the day-to-day of that,” she said.

How organizations can adapt

Leaders have several options to ensure AI supports rather than undermines workplace connection. In a recent piece for Harvard Business Review, Hadley and co-author Sarah L. Wright suggested that organizations monitor the social impact of AI adoption, create guidelines for when AI should or should not replace human interaction, and design AI systems that actually prompt people to talk to each other.

For example, an AI assistant could direct an employee to a human colleague before answering a question itself. AI could also be used to support relationship-building by planning team events, such as monthly outings or coffee chats. These small interventions can preserve the informal interactions that build trust and collective knowledge.

Organizations should also train managers to recognize when AI is becoming a substitute for mentorship. They can set expectations around knowledge sharing, encourage senior employees to share their expertise in visible ways, and create spaces where asking questions of people is normalized.

Goyal says she would like to see more open dialogue at work, with AI functioning as a supplement to collaboration rather than a substitute for it. That means using AI for routine tasks while still making room for human curiosity, spontaneity, and connection.

Source:ZDNET News