KnowIT

AI tools aim to make the workplace more human

W. P. Carey students and alums are building platforms that promote empathy, inclusion, and stronger team dynamics.

Molly Loonam

2026-05-06

Poor critical thinking. Job loss. "Brain rot." There's no shortage of commentary on how artificial intelligence may be making us worse off.

But what happens when AI is designed to improve our lives?

This spring, ASU's International Students and Scholars Center hosted the Love, AI, and Business Innovation Challenge, a pitch competition inviting participants to show how AI-driven business innovations can cultivate a culture of care in today's workplace. The challenge drew on Mohammad Anwar's love-centered culture framework, which emphasizes inclusion, empathy, and vulnerability in business.

The results offered a glimpse of how emerging leaders are using AI to make work more human — not less.

Drawing on experience in the tech industry, teammates Kanha Jodhpurkar (MS-AIB '26) and Vipul Navale (MS-AIB '26) saw firsthand how heavy workloads and low visibility can drive burnout. In response, they created Heart Metrics, a manager operating system powered by a Work Happiness Index that translates workplace signals into empathy-driven leadership actions.

The application — which earned first place — uses AI to help managers foster more equitable, inclusive workplaces by tracking team dynamics, workloads, and employee well-being, while identifying opportunities for recognition and growth.

"Our project defines love in the workplace as fairness, empathy, respect, and intentional support," Jodhpurkar says. "We want leaders to see who is going unnoticed and elevate those doing the work."

The dashboard also helps managers understand why some employees may be struggling.

"We rarely find people who don't want to work — more often, something isn't working for them, or they're dealing with challenges outside the workplace," Jodhpurkar says. "We want better connections between managers and their teams, and to create environments where employees feel understood and valued."

The second-place winner, THRIVE Loop — created by Prajwal Gorkhar Chandrashekar (MS-BA '25), Ujwala Kavya Jayarama (MS-BA '25), Anand Chauhan (PhD Aerospace Engineering '30), and Ankitha Prabhu — is an AI-enabled reflection and repair tool designed to improve workplace communication during high-pressure moments. Built around the idea that trust is often damaged through repeated small interactions rather than major conflicts, THRIVE Loop helps users reset tense conversations, refine messages, and, when needed, connect anonymously with a human counselor.

"We kept noticing that most workplace damage isn't one big incident; it's small moments repeated over time until trust erodes," Jayarama says. "THRIVE Loop gives users a way to pause before sending a harsh message or reset after a tense meeting — without any monitoring or scoring."

By helping users communicate more clearly during difficult conversations, the THRIVE Loop team aimed to encourage trust, empathy, and accountability in the workplace.

"Instead of trying to define or enforce culture, our goal was to make positive interactions easier to achieve in real work situations," Chandrashekar says.

Beyond individual pitches, the competition challenged participants to think more intentionally about how AI is built and applied.

Before entering the Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence and Business program, Jayarama approached problems primarily through a technical lens. That perspective evolved as she began to consider the human impact of technology.

"W. P. Carey students bring real-world awareness to how they think about AI; they're not just building for efficiency, they're asking whether a tool actually makes the environment safer and more human," Jayarama says.

The program also emphasizes using AI to support and enhance — not diminish — human work.

"Students thought carefully about where AI should support people rather than replace them," Chandrashekar says. "It reflects a shift toward using AI to strengthen leadership and team dynamics, not just increase efficiency."

For Jodhpurkar, the competition was a natural extension of his W. P. Carey education. As a member of one of the program's first cohorts, he recalls a faculty director urging students to approach their future roles as stewards of emerging technologies.

"He encouraged us to carry ourselves with pride, while recognizing the responsibility that comes with it," Jodhpurkar says.

Following their success in the Love, AI, and Business Innovation Challenge, Jodhpurkar and Navale plan to enter Heart Metrics in additional pitch competitions.

"I'm going to build on what I've learned at W. P. Carey and through these challenges," he says. "Being devoted to learning — and loving what you do — matters. I'm grateful for my professors and everyone who's helped me along the way."

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