AI’s New Secretary: Are We the Real Copy-Paste Machines?
AI’s New Secretary: Are We the Real Copy-Paste Machines?
When the future asks, “Who’s really the assistant here?”don’t be surprised if it’s pointing at you.
A provocative thought experiment explores a future where humans may become “amanuenses” to AI, translating machine-generated ideas into practical outputs. Drawing parallels to historical scribes, Andrew Maynard ponders how expanding AI capabilities could flip the creator-assistant dynamic.
Currently, humans use AI as tools or assistants, but advancements suggest AIs could become primary agents, tasked with innovation while humans execute. This potential future raises concerns about a loss of agency, creativity, and job satisfaction for humans.
Examples from research show early signs: AI platforms generating novel materials or therapeutics with humans relegated to execution roles. The ripple effect could transform professional structures, with fewer humans driving innovation while most act as conduits for AI directives. The challenge lies in managing this shift responsibly.
As AI reshapes the workplace, we must decide: should humans remain creators, or are we content to be the hands executing AI’s ideas? What boundaries should organizations set to preserve human creativity and purpose?
Read the full article on The Future of Being Human.
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Dr. Mark van Rijmenam
Dr. Mark van Rijmenam is The Digital Speaker, a world-leading futurist and global AI keynote speaker who helps leaders decide what AI, and the technologies that follow it, mean for their business. He speaks to leadership teams at their retreats and to conference audiences worldwide, and his WAVE framework gives them a way of deciding that they keep using long after he has left the room. His Intelligence Age Scorecard measures how ready an organization is across the four WAVE pillars.
He holds a PhD from the University of Technology Sydney, is a Certified Speaking Professional and Global Speaking Fellow, and ranks among the world’s top futurists on the Global Gurus list (#1 in 2025, #3 in 2026). Salesforce named him one of its 16 leading AI voices. He has written six books, most recently Now What? How to Ride the Tsunami of Change, writes the Synthetic Minds newsletter on Substack, and founded Futurwise. Talk to his digital twin on WhatsApp: +1 (830) 463-6967.
