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AI is already transforming how we operate, unlocking productivity gains that were once out of reach. But amid this rapid acceleration, theres a growing risk: that we design work around what machines do best, and lose sight of how people grow, adapt, and ultimately, drive innovation. Lately, Ive been having conversations with my peers in the learning and development community about this. Were at a pivotal moment. The choices we make now will determine whether AI leads to a more empowered and resilient workforce or one where employees can prompt algorithms but atrophy the very human skills that enable creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking. No trade-off The good news is that it doesnt have to be a trade-off. We have a rare opportunity to redesign work as a true partnership between people and technology. AI supercharges productivity. But what if it also expands human capability as we work? Imagine a financial analyst using AI not just to generate a report, but to understand the why behind the numbers. Or a junior marketer learning in a simulated environment where AI offers real-time feedback and suggestions. These arent futuristic hypotheticals, theyre design choices we can make today. A coach, not just a tool When applied with care, AI can become a coach, not just an automation tool, supporting people in building skills through their day-to-day work. Theres an old saying that experience is the best teacher. I know this to be true because Ive lived it firsthand. During my first 15 years working in L&D, I had the great fortune to work with true masters in our craft, not just learning from textbooks and theories, but truly apprenticing through hands-on experience. Since my early career days, the 70-20-10 learning model has become a widely recognized framework for L&D: 70% of learning happens through experience, 20% through relationships, and 10% through structured training or study. So what happens when AI produces the perfect solution effortlessly in less than 30 seconds, potentially diminishing these vital learning experiences? True learning, growth, and adaptation come from doing the work. Writing the book. Solving the complex problem. Navigating a conflict. Its in these moments of hardship, challenge, and struggle that people grow and change most profoundly. Learning by subtraction In the AI era, learning will be just as much about subtractionchallenging ones current mental models, questioning assumptions, and letting go of old ways of being and doing that no longer serveas it is about adding new knowledge. It is through opportunities for innovation, like hackathons, or creating slack time where workers have autonomy over how best to use their skills and talent, that we can focus on more strategic work and stimulate novel ideas. Some companies are already embracing short-term gigs that get employees out of their comfort zone and contribute outside their usual roles: a finance team member joining a product sprint, a marketer exploring data science. These types of hands-on experiences not only require skill; they produce skill, as well as build confidence and curiosity to tackle even greater challenges. Social beings Humans are inherently social beings; we learn, grow, and innovate with and through others. What happens, then, when technology begins to separate us from one anotherbreaking down the vital connections that allow junior workers to learn from senior ones, and novices to apprentice with expertspotentially leading to isolated and fragmented workforces? The answer isnt to slow down tech adoption, its to double down on connection. Cultivating an environment rich with social connection creates trust, shared purpose, and the kind of informal interactions that spark new ideas and strengthen culture. It’s within this context of human connection that we see the true value of our uniquely human skills emerge. This is backed by Workdays research, which shows that 83% of employees believe AI will elevate the importance of uniquely human skills. Skills like emotional intelligence, creativity, and communication are no longer nice to have, theyre essential. The future belongs to those who recognize the power of AI and humans working together. By intentionally designing work as a true partnership between people and technology, we can unlock a future of unprecedented productivity, innovation, and fulfillment.
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E-Commerce
Douglas Rushkoff, the writer and media theorist who chronicled the countercultural spirit of early 90s online culture in books like Cyberia, hopes AI can help recapture that eras sense of possibility. “I feel like there’s another opportunity to kind of stop using technology on people, and for people to start using technology to realize new visions,” says Rushkoff. He recently joined the AI consulting startup Andus Labs, where he serves as a kind of scholar-in-residence. Hes also helping produce an upcoming Andus event called After Now, which will take place on July 23 and allow both online and in-person audiences in Manhattan to share thoughts on how AI will shape the future. Speakers include musician Brian Eno, The Atlantic CEO Nick Thompson, MIT scientist Nataliya Kos’myna, and investors Esther Dyson and Albert Wenger. Thompson will speak on AIs impact on the media and information ecosystem. Eno, who has long worked with pre-LLM generative technologies to create music and art, will join Rushkoff in a conversation about “emergence, uncertainty, and the creative power of letting go.” Comedian Greg Barris is scheduled to demonstrate how to build a collaborative AI assistant. Entrepreneur Julia Dixon, who created the AI platform ESAI to help college applicants despite having little tech background, will discuss how no-code tools can turn “AI curiosity into scaled impact.” Dyson and Wenger will explore how AI may transform business, along with broader economic and social systems. The event will also help Andus Labsfounded by Chris Perry, a former innovation executive at marketing agency Weber Shandwickbegin building a network of AI-focused professionals. But according to Rushkoff, it’s equally an opportunity to reflect on what the AI era should look like: not just how the technology is used, but how society and work may need to evolve alongside it. “Rather than looking for fast answers, how do we iterate with these technologies to create new and more compelling questions?” says Rushkoff. Already, Andus Labs is collaborating with Marina Gorbis, executive director of the Institute for the Future in Palo Alto, on a concept they call a “civic stack” for public AI applications. The company also plans to help corporate clients build internal AI innovation labsspaces where small teams can explore how AI might serve their unique needs, rather than treat it as just another IT product. “As if they’re bringing in Lotus 1-2-3,” Rushkoff says. “The idea is to go into a company and find 10 or 20 people who are willing to think and experiment in this way, and have a certain amount of their time be able to be dedicated to really thinking through what aspects of their company they want to start to interrogate and amplify with these technologies, and then working with them to hopefully develop bespoke instances.” Andus Labs also plans to publish insights from its work, Rushkoff says, as part of a broader effort to promote what it calls “generative thinking”not just by machines, but by humans. “We’re trying to be to the autonomous technology age, what Bauhaus was to the industrial age,” Rushkoff says. “Bauhaus was looking at how you design industrially around the human body, and human perception, and human scale.” Rushkoff is the author of more than a dozen books, including Survival of the Richest and Throwing Rocks at the Google Bus, and hosts the podcast Team Human. His work often critiques techno-solutionism and the commodification of human attention, pushing instead for more humane and equitable uses of technology. His goal with Andus is to focus on a more human-centered approach than that of traditional tech firms, which he says often see AI as merely a new domain for market expansion. He doesnt intend to shy away from broader societal questions, including why people still need to work for a living, even as AI reshapes the economy. “I know it sounds idealistic, but I guess what I’m saying is these apparent AI challenges can launch different kinds of conversations,” he says. “And then they suggest a different way of working with AI, which is not to accelerate the rate at which we can develop industrial age, easy solutions for problems, but rather to engage in a new style of generative thinking, [where] we iterate questions and problems with artificial intelligence.”
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E-Commerce
If you want to buy an electric vehicleor solar panels or a heat pump or home batterytheres a short window of time to make use of the existing federal tax credits currently available. Under the Inflation Reduction Act, the tax credits were supposed to last 10 years. Now, thanks to the Republican One Big Beautiful Bill, there are only about 10 weeks left to claim the EV tax credits before they disappear. Other clean energy tax credits will expire at the end of the year. Heres what you need to know if you want to make use of them to help cut emissions and save on your energy bills. New electric vehicles Deadline: September 30 If you need a new car, its a good time to get an EV. Models qualify for a tax credit of up to $7,500 if theyre assembled in North America and meet American sourcing requirements for battery parts and critical minerals. Theres a price limit of $55,000 for cars and $80,000 for trucks, and an income limit for taxpayers ($150,000 for single filers). You can claim the credit on your tax return next year, but many dealerships also offer the option to transfer the credit to the dealer and get an immediate discount. For foreign-made EVs, you may still be able to get a discount if you lease a car through a loophole that classifies leased cars as commercial clean vehicles. The dealer can get the tax credit and pass on the savings to you. Used electric vehicles Deadline: September 30 The market for used EVs is booming; they’ve outsold used gas cars for five out of the last seven months. More than a third of the EVs available now are under $25,000. Thats the price limit for used cars to qualify for a $4,000 tax credit. (Cars also have to be purchased from a licensed dealer, be at least two years old, and on resale for the first time.) The income limit for taxpayers is lower than for new cars: For a single person, your adjusted gross income needs to be $75,000 or less. EV chargers Deadline: June 2026 If you need an EV charger in your garage, you have more time to make your purchase: The tax credit of up to $1,000 doesnt expire until next summer. Rooftop solar Deadline: December 31 Like some of the other clean energy credits, the tax credit for solar panels existed long before the Biden administration. For the past 20 years, if you installed solar panels or solar shingles on your roof, you could get a 30% tax credit (on average, worth around $4,600). Now its going away. Adding solar to your home can help save thousands per year on electric bills. If you pair the panels with home battery storage, you can also have clean backup power when the grid goes down. If you lease solar panels rather than buying them, the incentives last a little longer: Companies that lease solar can claim federal tax credits until 2027 and pass on savings to you. But because tariffs are pushing prices up, it may still make sense to act sooner. Battery storage, including some induction stoves Deadline: December 31 Even if you don’t have rooftop solar, a home battery can help you save money and cut emissions by storing electricity when there’s extra renewable energy available on the grid. To qualify for the current 30% tax credit, the battery must have a capacity of at least 3 kilowatt-hours. It includes sleek wall units and even high-end induction stoves that double as battery storage. Like companies that lease solar, those that lease batteries have longer to claim tax creditsuntil the 2030s, in this case. Geothermal heating Deadline: December 31 Even if you live in a climate thats sweltering in the summer and freezing in the winter, the temperature underground stays steady. Geothermal heat pumps tap into this, transferring heat into a house in the winter and reversing the process in the summer to keep the house cool. Theyre pricey, with costs ranging from $15,000 to $35,000 or more. The current tax credit offers 30% of the cost of the tech and installation, with no cap and no income limit for the taxpayer. Again, there’s a longer timeline for companies that lease geothermal systems to claim credits and offer consumers some savings. Air-source heat pumps Deadline: December 31 Air-source heat pumps pull heat from the air, even in cold climates like Maine. Swapping out a gas furnace and air conditioner for air-source heat pumps (either a central system or mini splits) can help you save hundreds of dollars per year on energy bills. Heat pumps are around three times more efficient than traditional heating. If your current HVAC system is nearing the end of its life, this could be a good time to invest. Heat pumps are pricey, with an average whole-home system costing nearly $20,000; a single-zone system can cost around $6,000. The current 30% tax credit has a cap of $2,000. Water heaters Deadline: December 31 A heat pump water heater is as much as four times as efficient as a standard water heater, and can help save around $200 per year for some homes. The current tax credit covers up to 30% of the cost, with a cap of $2,000. Solar water heaters, which use a rooftop system to heat water, are eligible for a 30% credit with no cap. Weatherization, electrical upgrades, and home energy audits Deadline: December 31 To help make your house more energy-efficient, you can get tax credits of up to 30% on insulation and air sealing ($1,200 cap); exterior doors (up to $500); and windows and skylights ($600). Electrical upgrades are capped at $600. (In total, weatherization and electrical upgrades can’t get a credit larger than $1,200 for the year.) Another tax credit offers $150 for a professional home energy audit. Next steps Under the IRA, with incentives that would have been in place for a decade, homeowners could slowly make upgrades as existing equipment wore out. Now they have to make harder decisions about what to prioritize in the next few months. Even without the tax credits, there are still thousands of other incentives in place from states, lcal governments, and utility companies. The savings calculator from the nonprofit Rewiring America can help you find additioal ways to save. The IRA’s rebates for clean energy products weren’t cut in the reconciliation bill, and some states have rolled out rebate programs using those funds. Meanwhile, energy prices are expected to keep going up. That’s both because of the huge energy demand from companies like data centers and because the Big Beautiful Bill made it much harder to build new renewable energy, the cheapest source of new power. Investing in solar, heat pumps, or other clean devices is “a way for homeowners to get themselves off the roller coaster of ever-increasing energy prices,” says Alex Amend, communications director at Rewiring America. Even without the tax credits to help with up-front costs, the new equipment can make sense financially over its lifetime. “As soon as you’ve flipped the switch, you’re going to be saving hundreds of dollars annually,” Amend says. “That’s still very much worth the investment.”
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E-Commerce
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