This article is part of a series exploring how AI will transform the workplace. Much of the conversation around AI focuses on automation and efficiency, on how we will do more with less. But this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the transformational nature of AI at work, so we wanted to scratch the surface and uncover more. Each piece in this series will explore a different role AI might play in the future, helping us imagine the possibilities ahead.
We start with AI as a personal mentor: a guide that will help us manage our energy, focus, and wellbeing in a way that is deeply personal and adaptive.
A personal mentor, powered by AI
Imagine starting your workday with an AI that truly knows you. Not just your calendar and workflows, but your mental energy, your focus patterns, and even your state of wellbeing on a given day.
This will be our reality in the not-too-distant future.
As we speak, AI is evolving from what we understand it to be today – a productivity tool – into a work companion of the future. A personal assistant that quietly adapts your environment, curates your workflow, and offers gentle nudges to help you stay on track.
The beginnings of this shift are already starting to emerge. For example, Microsoft’s Viva Insights analyzes your work habits and suggests focus times to minimize interruptions. Meanwhile, tools like Apple’s Health app and Fitbit track biometrics like sleep quality and stress levels, providing personalized tips to help you maintain balance and focus throughout the day.
From digital assistant to your biggest champion
AI has already had a transformational impact on how we work, but these changes have focused on eliminating the administrative tasks that drain time without impacting business outcomes.
This is a great thing. After all, we’re a generation that’s overwhelmed with busy work. According to our recent research, most employees feel that they spend most of their time on tasks that they not only don’t like to do but also that add little to no value to business growth, such as attending meetings (39%), taking meeting notes (34%) and scheduling meetings (27%).
But the next evolution of AI will be less about taking on repetitive tasks (though this will continue to become the norm). It will be more about understanding you.
AI as a personal mentor will leverage data from biometric wearables and your behavior patterns to help you navigate your workday with clarity and intention. Apps like Headspace and Calm, for example, use AI-driven recommendations based on real-time stress indicators (such as elevated heartrate) to suggest mindfulness breaks or breathing exercises exactly when you need them.
Imagine your AI noticing when your focus dips and automatically adjusting your digital workspace. Tools like Focus Assist on Windows or Apple’s Focus Mode already mute distracting notifications when you’re deep into important tasks.
Our physical space will also adapt with us throughout the day. AI will integrate with smart lighting systems, such as Philips Hue, to adjust workspace lighting to match your circadian rhythm, promoting better productivity and comfort.
It’s not just about working smarter; it’s about working healthier.
Personalized productivity
Traditional productivity tools assume that efficiency is linear. More hours, more output.
But AI as a mentor will take a context-aware approach, recognizing that real productivity is cyclical. Some moments call for deep focus, while others require creative wandering or recovery.
By tracking when your attention seems to be waning, heart rate variability, and subtle posture shifts, AI will begin to sense what you need before you’re even aware of it. Wearables like the Oura ring are already making great strides in this space with embedded AI to support holistic balance across multiple health parameters.
“Advisor is your in-app health and wellbeing assistant. It helps make sense of your data—whether it’s your sleep, activity, or recovery trends—by providing context and insights that go beyond the numbers.”
Johanna Still, UX Writing Manager and Head of Insights at Oura
Over time, your personal AI mentor will learn about your personal habits and preferences, potentially optimizing your daily schedule according to when you’re most likely to be in peak productivity or more in need of ‘simple’ tasks.
The key is personalization. AI will not be a one-size-fits-all solution. It will be an adaptive system that evolves with each person’s unique rhythms and cognitive patterns.
From managing time, to managing energy
The intention here is not to squeeze every ounce of efficiency out of the workforce, but to create conditions where people can do their best thinking, sustain their energy over time, and maintain a sense of autonomy over their work.
By shifting from managing time to managing energy, AI will enable workers to approach tasks with greater clarity, creativity, and resilience.
It will help redefine what a good workday looks like. Not just in terms of output, but in terms of how people feel while working.
Rethinking productivity
As AI evolves into a mentor, it will push us to rethink what productivity actually means. It will help us transition from rigid 9-5 work structures to dynamic workflows that best suit our personal and team dynamics. It will enable knowledge workers to reclaim focus, creativity, and well-being—not as trade-offs but as essential components of meaningful work.
This will be a reimagination of what work feels like. And in a world where AI is often framed as a disruptive force, this is one future of work we should be excited to embrace.
