HIGH-TECH REVOLUTION, HUMAN HEART: AI, MACHINE LEARNING, AND ROBOTICS IN BUSINESS

Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and robotics are transitioning from experimental novelties to core infrastructure across diverse business sectors. This editorial introduces four refereed articles that explore this transformation in legal services, social technology, events, and luxury hospitality. A unifying insight emerges: competitive advantage with AI will come not from flashy algorithms alone, but from human-centered integration through balancing automation with ethics, oversight, and empathy. In legal services, AI is augmenting workflows but not absolving lawyers of accountability, as courts insist that delegation to AI “does not dilute professional responsibility”. In social platforms, AI has become an active participant reshaping interactions and incentives, demanding new theories for adaptive human–AI systems. By 2035, event experiences may be seamlessly orchestrated by “invisible” AI, yet the defining feature will be how technology enriches human connection. A decade-long analysis of global hotel giants shows that those who thrived combined aggressive tech adoption (from chatbots to service robots) with loyalty, trust, and leadership. Across all these domains, the message is clear: AI’s future in business lies in professional infrastructure governed, transparent, and aligned with human values rather than as a shortcut for cost or efficiency alone. As we conclude with a perspective from the hospitality sector, even in a high-tech world, enduring success runs on the human heart and the irreplaceable value of “high touch” service.