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Since its inception, generative AI has quickly made its way into modern workplaces — whether through individual employee use or officially sanctioned implementations. It has helped to optimize workflows, enhance communication and speed efficiency.
Studies show that when applied effectively, generative AI can boost the performance of highly skilled employees by up to 40%. But "applied effectively" is the key phrase — because those same studies also highlight the need to identify appropriate use cases to maximize the technology's potential benefits, particularly when it comes to supporting collaboration in a hybrid or remote work environment.
We spoke with experts on what the technology can do, how to optimize its use and where it's going next.
Multiplying the Use Cases
AI has emerged as a powerful collaboration tool, connecting workers across geographies and time zones.
But, Smita Hashim, chief product officer at Zoom, said for it to work effectively, the system has to be reliable and interconnected.
Having a single AI agent deployed across a collaboration platform, as well as third-party apps, enables it to orchestrate efficient and effective communication, making sure teams are always connected and synchronized, regardless of location. But Hashim says that while AI-powered tools like virtual assistants and AI agents can help support teams with things like meeting preparation and follow-up, from scheduling, agenda setting and action tracking, they should also serve to optimize existing workflows and empower users to be their best at work. They are there to connect the dots for users, she said.
"Not only will an AI agent be able to remind you of work, but [it] will also be able to help you accomplish routine tasks, like scheduling a meeting and sending a meeting summary to a colleague," she said. "As we look toward the next five years, I expect AI agents to become a lot more personalized and customizable to each organization and each individual where ever they are."
Enabling — and Transforming — Remote Work
More than two-thirds of US employers offer some type of remote work flexibility, and several have taken the lessons learned from supporting remote workers through the pandemic to create more efficient work environments for employees out of the office.
Prakash Mana, CEO of Cloudbrink, expects this trend to continue, despite the headline-grabbing RTO mandates by some of the larger firms around the country.
“I expect this trend to continue for two reasons. First, Gen Z, the first true digital-first generation, is fast becoming the primary new talent pool. Second, secure remote connectivity now offers the speed, performance and security to match the in-office environment,” Mana said.
However, he sees problems, too.
AI, the metaverse and gaming networks will push network boundaries to the limit. As adoption increases, extreme data intensive applications like generative AI, large language models, as well as metaverse apps and gaming networks, will increase the stress on network infrastructure.
“The demand these applications put on the network will grow exponentially," Mana said. "With more remote users and devices than ever, packet loss and network latency could become a crippling issue. Networking solutions that guarantee end-to-end reliability and performance on these consumer grade connections will win the market.”
Beyond Productivity
Deborah Piscione, author of "Employment Is Dead" and co-founder of the Work3 Institute, believes the current discourse around AI and remote collaboration focuses too heavily on productivity tools while overlooking the more transformative potential: AI's ability to facilitate new forms of asynchronous deep work.
The real transformation isn't in making meetings more efficient, she said, it's in potentially eliminating the need for many synchronous interactions altogether.
“We're seeing early examples where AI helps teams collaborate effectively across time zones by maintaining contextual awareness of projects and automatically surfacing relevant information when needed, rather than requiring real-time coordination,” Piscione said.
More to the point, the greatest challenge isn't productivity, it's cognitive bandwidth. Remote teams aren't struggling with output, she added, they're overwhelmed by the mental load of context-switching between tools, maintaining awareness of multiple workstreams and managing information flow.
"AI's most valuable contribution may be in reducing this cognitive burden by acting as an intelligent layer that connects disparate workflows and maintains project context, allowing humans to focus on higher-order thinking and creative problem-solving," she said.
AI should be seen as more than just a tool for efficiency. It enables entirely new workflows that were previously impossible. By maintaining project context, identifying patterns and surfacing insights, AI acts as a collective team memory and intelligence system.
The real risk, Piscione says, isn't over-reliance on AI but under-utilizing human potential. When used wisely, AI can free people to focus on creativity, judgment and relationship-building rather than merely speeding up old processes. The real opportunity lies in rethinking how work is structured in an AI-enhanced world.
Where to Next?
While AI is likely to continue to transform itself, Piscione expects the technology will nevertheless continue to drive the shift from synchronous-first to asynchronous-first collaboration. She says it will result in the emergence of AI systems that can maintain project context over time, automatically document decisions and rationale, and facilitate more effective asynchronous communication. This, she said, will enable truly flexible work arrangements where team members can contribute meaningfully regardless of time zone or schedule.
“While knowledge work industries like technology and professional services are obvious beneficiaries, I believe the most interesting applications will emerge in traditionally hands-on fields like healthcare, manufacturing and education,” she said. “AI can bridge the gap between physical and digital work, enabling new hybrid models where expertise can be effectively shared and applied remotely."
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Editor's Note: Read more about AI trends:
- How Agentic AI Will Change the Workplace: An Insider View — Employees of some of the major tech vendors in the agentic AI space discuss opportunities and challenges associated with the technology.
- Zoho Enters Agentic AI Fray With Zia Agents — Zoho's new AI agent platform, Zia Agents, is built for its own productivity suite. The agentic AI integrates seamlessly across the over 50 Zoho workplace apps.
- You Have to Know What AI You Have — The first step in creating a strong AI governance strategy is having a clear understanding of where and how AI is being used in your organization.