Will AI Replace Humans? Dr. Ayesha Khanna Explains the Risks

What risks come with AI systems that can lie, cheat, or manipulate?

Today on Digital Disruption, we’re joined by Dr. Ayesha Khanna, CEO of Addo AI.

Dr. Khanna is a globally recognized AI expert, entrepreneur, and CEO of Addo, helping businesses leverage AI for growth. With 20+ years in digital transformation, she advises Fortune 500 CEOs and serves on global boards, including Johnson Controls, NEOM Tonomus, and L’Oréal’s Scientific Advisory Board. A graduate of Harvard, Columbia, and the London School of Economics, she spent a decade on Wall Street advising on information analytics. A thought leader in AI, Dr. Khanna has been recognized as a groundbreaking entrepreneur by Forbes, named to Edelman’s Top 50 AI Creators (2025), and featured in Salesforce’s 16 AI Influencers to Know (2024). Committed to diversity in tech, she founded the charity 21C Girls, which taught thousands of students the basics of AI and coding in Singapore, and currently provides scholarships for mid-career women through her education company Amplify.

Ayesha sits down with Geoff to discuss how artificial intelligence is disrupting industries, reshaping the economy, and redefining the future of jobs. This conversation explores why critical thinking will be the most important skill in an AI-driven workplace, how businesses can use AI to scale innovation instead of getting stuck in “pilot purgatory,” and what risks organizations must prepare for, including bias, data poisoning, cybersecurity threats, and manipulative reasoning models. Ayesha shares insights from her work with governments and Fortune 500 companies on building national AI strategies, creating governance frameworks, and balancing innovation with responsibility. The conversation dives into how AI and jobs intersect, whether automation will replace or augment workers and why companies need to focus on growth, reskilling, and strategic automation rather than layoffs. They also discuss the rise of the Hybrid Age, where humans and AI coexist in every part of life, and what it means for society, relationships, and the global economy.

In this video:

00:00 Intro

00:43 The future of AI and the next 5 years

02:16 The biggest AI risks

05:25 Fake alignment & governance

09:08 Why AI pilots fail

15:30 What successful companies do

23:14 AI and jobs: Automation, reskilling, and why critical thinking matters most

29:39 The Hybrid Age

37:09 AI and society: relationships with AI, human agency, and ethical concerns

46:13 Global AI strategies

54:00 Overhyped narratives and what people get wrong about AI and jobs

56:27 The Skills Gap opportunity

58:31 The importance of risk frameworks, critical thinking, and optimism

Connect with Dr. Khanna

Website: https://www.ayeshakhanna.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayeshakhanna/

X: (21) Dr. Ayesha Khanna (@ayeshakhanna1) / X

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