Seite - 51 - in Coaching im digitalen Wandel

51 Chatbots as an instance of an artificial intelligence coach A perspective on current realities and future possibilities Nicola Strong and Nicky Terblanche Artificial intelligence (AI) is making inroads in the helping professions, includ- ing coaching. This conceptual paper considers the possible future of AI Coaching. We look at what is currently done in fields related to coaching and recommend chatbots as a promising technology for implementing AI Coaches. We describe what needs to be considered to implement chatbot AI Coaches from a practical, ethical and coaching best practice perspective. We conclude that the coaching community must get involved in understand- ing the potential of AI Coaching and help to chart the course for creating AI Coaches that not only adhere to coaching best-practices, but are also ethically sound. There is a beep from my phone. I know what it is. My wellbeing coach, Wysa, wants to check in with me. Sometimes I am quietly reassured by this con- tact. Sometimes it is so the wrong moment. Wysa is an »emotionally intel- ligent« chatbot which responds to my text and emoji clues (Wysa). It is part of a wider research programme that uses a combination of evidence-based cognitive- behavioural therapy (CBT) techniques, natural language and mood tracking through my button choices to establish my current state of being. Our text-based conversation usually leads to appropriate messages of understanding with a guide on techniques to relax and build my skills in resilience. Wysa is a smartphone app available 24/7, patient, confident and occasionally witty. As I am experimenting with Wysa, I cannot help but wonder if this is the future of coaching. Surely coaching (being truly present for another human) is a uniquely human skill. How much of this talk of artificial intelligence (AI), robots, chatbots and machine learning is hype and how much reality, and what role can it play both at work and in life coaching? Open-Access-Publikation im Sinne der CC-Lizenz BY-NC-ND 4.0