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The most interesting stories in HR & AI weekly

Survey Finds HR More Skeptical than Rest of C-Suite About AI

A new survey found HR and people leaders are among the most skeptical functions when it comes to adopting AI, reflecting concerns around ethics, trust, governance, and workforce impact even as organizations accelerate AI investments. Why it matters: Whether or not the survey overstates HR's resistance, business leaders increasingly expect HR to lead AI transformation, not just govern its risks. Reality Check: The research comes from a consulting firm with a vested interest in executive alignment, so the framing may be sharper than the reality, but the underlying challenge for HR to demonstrate AI leadership is real.

Amazon Implements New AI Cost Controls After Internal Projects Exceed Budgets

Amazon disclosed several internal AI projects that generated massive, unexpected costs; including one failed Claude-powered initiative that ran up a $1.8 million bill, exceeding its budget by 860% before anyone noticed, prompting the company to build new AI spending guardrails. Why it matters: As organizations move from AI experimentation to enterprise deployment, managing AI costs and governance is becoming just as important as driving adoption, especially as token-based pricing can make seemingly small mistakes extraordinarily expensive. Reality Check: Amazon isn't pulling back from AI; it's investing heavily while learning that successful AI transformation requires financial controls, usage monitoring, and governance alongside technical capabilities.

Brookings Calls for AI and Robot Relations Functions

A new Brookings analysis argues that as AI agents and robots become embedded in organizations, companies will need dedicated "AI and Robot Relations" functions to oversee how humans and intelligent systems collaborate, resolve conflicts, define accountability, and shape workplace norms. Why it matters: HR could be uniquely positioned to lead this emerging discipline, expanding beyond employee relations into governing human-AI collaboration and organizational trust; and we already know of one organization that has created an HR Business Partner role dedicated to managing AI agents. Reality Check: While few organizations are ready for a standalone AI Relations department today, the underlying responsibilities (AI governance, change management, workforce design, and employee experience) are already landing on many HR leaders' desks.

OpenAI’s Astra Pushes AI into Frontier Math

OpenAI says its unreleased Astra reasoning model generated novel proofs for 10 longstanding open problems across mathematics and theoretical computer science. Why it matters: AI is moving beyond summarizing existing knowledge toward generating original research, signaling that knowledge workers, including HR leaders, should expect AI to increasingly contribute to complex, high-value problem solving rather than just routine tasks. Reality Check: These breakthroughs still required expert human validation and occurred in highly specialized domains, so while they demonstrate a major leap in AI reasoning, they don't yet translate directly into broad autonomy.

Chime Shrinks Workforce as AI Reshapes Operating Model

Fintech company Chime is cutting 10% of its workforce (about 150 employees), with CEO Chris Britt saying AI is enabling the company to operate with smaller, more focused teams as it restructures for its next phase of growth rather than simply replacing workers. Why it matters: Chime joins a growing list of companies explicitly linking organizational redesign to AI adoption, reinforcing that HR leaders should prepare for leaner structures and evolving role expectations. Reality Check: The headline is about layoffs, but companies are simultaneously investing heavily in AI capabilities and new skills even as they reduce headcount in selected areas.

Cisco Chief People Officer Kelly Jones argues that effective leadership in the AI era requires combining technology fluency with human-centered leadership, emphasizing AI understanding alongside psychological safety, trust, and employee connection. Key Insight: AI isn't replacing traditional leadership competencies, it's raising the bar by requiring leaders to pair technical judgment about AI with the human skills needed to help employees navigate continuous change.

What HR Wants Most from CHROs on AI

Survey Says: Last week’s poll shows HR leaders are looking first for access to better AI tools and models (26%), followed by encouragement and support (19%), with respondents signaling that practical enablement matters more than formal training, governance, or strategy alone.

The one thing I most want to see from my CHRO on AI:

Cornerstone research finds that organizations treating workforce readiness as a shared responsibility between the CHRO and CIO act on workforce changes 13% faster and are 67% more likely to feel equipped to make decisions at the speed AI demands, yet only 35% of HR and IT leaders make AI decisions jointly and fewer than half (48%) report working toward shared goals. Why it matters: The emerging differentiator isn't simply investing in AI; it's creating a governance model where HR and IT jointly own workforce strategy, skills, and AI adoption. Reality Check: While the benefits of shared ownership are becoming clearer, most organizations are still figuring out what effective CHRO-CIO partnership looks like in practice, leaving a significant opportunity for leaders to define governance, operating models, and decision rights before best practices fully emerge.

Gallup finds that employees are significantly more engaged when their organization has a clear AI integration plan, they use AI frequently in their role, and, most importantly, their manager actively supports AI adoption, reinforcing the outsized role managers play in shaping employee experiences during technological change. Why it matters: As organizations scale AI, equipping frontline managers to guide adoption, build confidence, and connect AI to day-to-day work may have a greater impact than the technology itself. Reality Check: Higher engagement is valuable, but it's not the end goal; the real measure of success is whether manager-led AI adoption translates into better performance.

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Until next week,

Mike & Adam

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