Co-Intelligence - Part 8: Can AI Really Be a Coach and Mentor?

Hey everyone! We’re almost done with our journey through Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI by Ethan Mollick! This week, I’m excited to explore Chapter 8, “AI As A Coach!” Let’s go!First, the idea of AI as my personal coach or mentor is equal parts thrilling and terrifying. Thrilling because the thought of immediate support and feedback is deliciously tempting for anyone (like me!) obsessively chasing growth. But it’s terrifying because, well, can AI ever really replace the magic of lived human wisdom?The Expertise Equation: Human Edge in an AI WorldEthan Mollick said it best:"The way to be useful in the world of AI is to have high levels of expertise as a human."That’s stuck with me, especially as I bounce between experimenting with AI tools and clinging to my own (very human) quirks and intuition. And a side note from my personal existential crisis (as an Enneagram 4w3, if you know what that means): “Who am I if I am not useful to the world?”So what does being an expert actually mean? When we talk about what it takes to truly become an expert, especially in an era where AI is everywhere, Mollick identifies a few foundations:1. Knowledge BaseAt the root of all expertise is a strong foundation of knowledge: the principles, facts, and frameworks that underpin a field.If you’re familiar with the “base layer” of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning, that’s knowing, understanding, recalling. AI is already remarkably good at helping us build this foundation, whether through retrieval of facts or quick explanations.2. Deliberate PracticeThe next level is all about intentional repetition and focused improvement. It’s not enough to know; you have to do, and do it mindfully.In practice, you begin to engage in the upper levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy—Application, Analysis, Synthesis, Evaluation, and even Creation.This is where incremental learning apps (e.g., Duolingo) shine. They nudge you to go one step further, to try again, to get a bit more uncomfortable and a bit more competent each time. By the way, this is called scaffolding in learning theory!Deliberate practice means working just beyond your comfort zone, on purpose, with specific goals for getting better. My favorite concept in learning theory—this is Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)!Coaching: The Missing IngredientBut here’s where it gets interesting… and a little sticky. There’s a third dimension to true expertise, one that’s often missing from both traditional learning and most of our AI experiments:Despite advances in knowledge delivery and personalized practice, the best growth happens when someone shows us our blind spots, helps course-correct, or challenges us to go further.Expert coaching and mentorship are notoriously hard to access. They’re even harder to scale to reach many people. Great coaches are rare, and tailored, nuanced feedback is almost never baked into our solo learning journeys.This is why so many of us plateau: we can Google concepts and grind away at practice problems, but without that targeted human (or expertly-humanlike) feedback, it’s tough to cross the threshold from competence to mastery.So, as promising as AI is in delivering the first two fundamentals, the open question ahead is: Can AI help us unlock truly great coaching—the kind that turns information and effort into actual wisdom and mastery?Mentorship: Rare as a UnicornHere’s the honest truth… real coaches and mentors are hard to come by. Sure, we might catch flashes of mentorship from managers, bosses, or wise strangers on the internet, but most of us are building our own “scaffolding” ladders—and they are often unstable. I’ve been there, waiting (hopeful! slightly desperate!) for someone to offer guidance, only to discover you often have to coach yourself into the next level.However, as I’ve been diving into my AI journey and following some of my favorite product experts, I am loving finding examples of AI as a coach and mentor!AI as a Manager’s Multiplying Force:If you are a manager, check out this recent podcast with Hillary Gridley, Head of Core Product at Whoop. She built custom GPTs to give real-time feedback to her team—instant presentation reviews, helpful nudges, all before things ever hit her desk. Her staff can use AI as the “first draft” reviewer, saving time and amplifying human mentorship rather than replacing it.Scaling Feedback in Product Discovery:Teresa Torres, author of Continuous Discovery Habits (the mentor I have never met!), is on a mission to make her hard-earned wisdom scalable. She’s been building an AI interview coach, experimenting, sharing her messy process on LinkedIn, and making nuanced feedback more accessible to her whole community. This is a game changer since story-based interviewing with clients is powerful, simple, and also very hard (since you’re often breaking bad habits of inserting your own assumptions or asking leading questions unknowingly).Side note: Continuous Discovery Habits is in my top three favorite product (and even facilitation-related) books. I guided my team in a retreat last year and made a guide for them. I have now made this available for you to download free so you can feel more confident getting started!My Take: Embrace the Mess & Keep Leveling UpAll in all, integrating AI into your growth journey is awkward and wonderful. The human edge of intuition, deep expertise, real connection—still reigns supreme! Even so, every adventure into AI stretches my own skills and, I hope, makes me a more thoughtful manager, facilitator, and human.So, for all my fellow lifelong learners: keep experimenting. Let AI nudge you, but don’t undervalue your own voice (even when it’s a little rambly or uniquely you). Mentorship and wisdom are rarely handed down from on high. They’re built, bit by bit, through community, persistence, and refusing to give up on figuring it out.Oh, Upcoming Adventures!Speaking of figuring it out, I’ve decided to stay on the book club–like podcast/blog because the next book is Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo. I’m stoked!Also, I’m likely to have a few bonus posts to share my learning with you on some exciting non-AI adventures. I’m off to Palo Alto next week for AJ&Smart’s Full Stack Facilitator training! Expect stories, mishaps, and more quirky confessions soon as I officially become and unshakeable facilitator.Stay curious, stay messy, and don’t stop leveling up! AI coach or not, your next breakthrough is just around the corner.Whenever you're ready, I can help you with:* Workshop design and facilitation* Facilitation and workshop training, including AI Opportunity Mapping and Sprints* Intention setting, planning, and incremental progress for success Get full access to Confessions of a Creative Leader at creativeleaderconfessions.substack.com/subscribe