AI Should Extend Human Expertise, Not Replace It, Learning with Experts Tells L&D Industry
Learning Live 2026 address argues that passive learning, not online learning, is holding workplace education back.
The future of artificial intelligence in workplace training lies in unlocking human connection rather than replacing it. This is the core argument driving a major industry address by leading AI and digital education platform, Learning with Experts, at Learning Live, the sector's landmark gathering this week.
The address, titled The Intelligent Learning Revolution, challenges the industry’s focus on passive, content-led training. Instead, Learning with Experts will argue that true behaviour change in the sector will be driven by community, storytelling, and the strategic use of AI to enhance human connection.
"If nobody changes what they do, did learning even happen?" asks Elspeth Briscoe, CEO of Learning with Experts. "For too long, the L&D industry has focused on delivering passive content and tracking completion. But people change through connection and experience. Our work is focused on building learning environments where people feel seen, supported, and part of communities. That is the key to driving real-world results."
Industry data supports this perspective*, with research from the CIPD revealing that 41% of L&D professionals consider a lack of learner engagement to be a barrier to success. Furthermore, only 8% of practitioners rank speeding up the transfer of learning into the workplace among their top three priorities. Despite 91% of organisations adopting learning technologies, only 36% of say line managers support employees in transferring those newly acquired skills into their roles.
Scaling the "Pyramid of Trust"
The session introduces the "Human Pyramid of Trust," a framework designed to embed and scale trusted human expertise. Under this proprietary model, real contact remains the most valuable experience but, recognising it cannot scale universally, introduces a hierarchy of video, voice, text and digital avatars to address that challenge. Leveraging an interactive, interrogatable and highly guardrailed library of a human expert's approved knowledge, the technology acts as a trusted but transparent proxy.
Importantly, the framework uses AI-driven sentiment analysis within the virtual classroom to complete the feedback loop, recognising when a learner needs support, and identifying where technology should hand back to a human.
Tracking Real-World Impact
This hybrid methodology has proven highly effective in sensitive sectors where trust is paramount. Alasdair Cant Associates, a training consultancy specialising in Motivational Interviewing around addiction, partnered with Learning with Experts to scale its vital training globally.
"We needed a trusted solution that could expand our reach from a five-person team to a global audience without losing the human-centric nature of our work," explains Alasdair Cant, founder of Alasdair Cant & Associates. "The platform handles the delivery and tracking seamlessly. This allows us to focus our energy on mentoring learners directly during critical stages of their development."
By using technology to track actual behaviour change, LWE has bypassed superficial course completion metrics. Its cohort-based, expert-led programmes consistently achieve completion rates over 80%.
To prove that digital learning can drive genuine behaviour change, the company points to its work in the healthcare sector. Collaborations with partners like the NHS have made public health education accessible to thousands of patients across the UK. Among learners completing these programmes, participants reported an average 20% improvement in health outcomes tied directly to their course objectives.
The arguments detailed will be presented live along with a platform demo by Elspeth Briscoe, David Rae, Lynne Thorne and Daniel Rosewarne during Learning Live 2026 on Thursday, 17 September 2026.