AI bots are entering many of our daily tasks at work and in commerce. But what happens when AI bots replace human participants in online meetings and events? Yay or nay?
What’s the point of joining a meeting or community if you send your AI avatar? What about privacy, data and knowledge protection if a bot has free range to use and share everything you’ve just said in a closed group?
These were questions posed by Anna Pietribisi, an executive communication advisor, and others in a LinkedIn post thread initiated by Elina Jutelyte, Founder of the events-based Freelance Business Community. However,
Jutelyte, whose community connects the freelance ecosystem through events, masterclasses and publications, shared that she “got shivers” while hosting a session of about 20 people, 5 of whom sent their AI assistants in their place, with “no human attendees behind them.”
Bots v. no bots?
Jutelyte tried to see things from both sides of the bots use argument in meetings. “On one side: Cool,” she said, justifying, “people are smart and efficient. If they can’t attend, they send their AI assistant to take notes or summarise the session for them. On another side, not so cool.”
Here she explained, from the event organiser’s perspective:
I may not want my curated content to be reshared all over the place without me knowing it. The access to replays, which should be a benefit for a specific group, might completely lose its value.
Trust and data protection
There’s also the trust factor. “Attendees and speakers expect a safe, human-centred space,” said Jutelyte. She continued, “If AI bots are quietly joining, recording, and learning, it changes the social contract of the event.”
And what about data protection? “Depending on where participants are from, there could even be GDPR or consent implications when third-party AI tools record or process the session content.”
She said it’s not just about control, it’s about “fairness, privacy, and preserving the integrity” of the community experience.
Speakers may be reluctant to take part when, in hindsight, they say to themselves, “Ouch. Did I just leak all my know-how and intelligence to a machine?”
Where are people siding on the topic?
Commentators in her LinkedIn post were predominantly siding with the no Bots argument when it came to meetings, yet suggested post-meeting use of AI for meeting summaries.
“I would prefer no bots. I want to be the one sharing recordings and then be able to retarget my outreach, if necessary,” posted Jean-François Bodart, a Belgium-based Fractional CCO, who helps ambitious B2B entrepreneurs secure consistent sales.
Laura Zambelli Sessona, an Italy-based business coach who designs user-centric products, services, and strategies for ways of working, shared her views on the topic: “No bots. Either you want to participate or you watch the recording. Or consume the summary of the recording made by your bot.”
Following this awkward and eye-opening experience, Jutelyte shared what she was going to do next:
✅ Update my community and event policies, terms, and conditions to reflect the fact that there are machines among us. and how much they allowed to be part of the group.
✅ Inform speakers about this reality, that AI assistants might be present in their sessions and what to do about it.
After reading this article, will you…
- Start to question even participating or sharing your expertise and views in your next online meeting, webinar or online conference if absent human attendees are replacing themselves with an AI bot to take notes?
- Will you want assurances from the organiser that what you say in the meeting will be kept confidential and not shared on a Large Language Model platform?
- Will you get the most out of the meeting if fewer people are actually participating in the discussion?
- Could you come up with a solution where Bots can be used, and confidentiality and data protection assured for human participants?
We welcome your views on this subject in the comments section. Responses may be monitored for appropriateness, professionalism and offensive remarks.
