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Bringing AI
Augmented
Research to Life:
The Human
Equation
Empathy, truth, and
authenticity in AI-
augmented UX
research
Ali Cuthbertson
Jason Telner
Jon Temple
Kathleen O’Brien
UXPA 2026 Vegas
Journey
• AI Is Changing UX Research
• The Pinocchio Problem
• What is AI changing
• Interactive Persona Exercise
• What We Learned
• The Future of Human-Centered Research
• Becoming Real
Jon G. Temple, Ph.D.
Design Principal & UX Creative Director, ex-IBM
Jason Telner, Ph.D.
Senior UX Researcher, Qualcomm
Kathleen O’Brien
Visual Designer, IBM
In the room
AI Is Changing UX Research
• Personas in seconds
• Insights instantly
• Automated synthesis
• Predictive journeys
AI can accelerate research, and preserving emotional truth remains a
uniquely human responsibility.
When AI Gets It Almost Right
• Customer service bots giving confident but incorrect advice
• AI-generated news stories containing fabricated facts
• Synthetic personas that feel believable but were they ever
validated
• Research summaries that smooth away contradictions
The result: It looks right. It sounds right…something feels off.
The Pinocchio Problem
• Looks human
• Sounds human
• Moves like human
• Not human yet
Does AI lie?
• Our fake tour guide did the same thing as AI: made stuff up
• Pinocchio is like this real boy (man) he aspires to be - both
intend to deceive
• But does AI intend to deceive?
• LLMs: Statistical models that predict the next most
plausible token
• Always provide a plausible answer – even if one does not
exist…
When the Nose
Starts Growing
• Predicting instead of listening
• Inferring instead of observing
• Synthesizing without validation
• Generalizing lived experience
Fluent does not mean true
Polished does not mean accurate
Coherent does not mean human
The
Illusion
of
Insight
Lies, d*mned lies, and AI hallucinations
• Confidently misrepresents what’s wrong as fact
• Stanford University: hallucination rates across 26 top models
range from 22% to 94%:
• Training set and bias
• Cannot differentiate between knowledge and belief
• Poorly documented or shallow domains
• Assume everything is truthful, technically accurate, or
complete and fully articulated
Tiny
Losses
Add
Up
One missed quote
One summary replacing emotion
One assumption left untested
One ignored contradiction
What AI
is really
changing?
• Speed
• Scale
• Automation
But also:
• Loss of nuance
• Flattened emotion
• Illusion of certainty
What are we
really losing?
• Context
• Contradiction
• Meaning
• Human experience
The Missing Layer
• Human experience moves through layers:
• Voice → Summary → Persona → Journey → Decision
• At each step, meaning can become more abstract.
• The risk:
What was felt becomes what was inferred.
What was lived becomes what was predicted.
Exercise
Stand up, stretch, remember we are human after all.
Exercise: Human vs
AI Persona
• Compare two personas
• Which feels real?
• Where does emotional truth
disappear?
Persona A
• (Insert Persona A content)
Persona B
• (Insert Persona B content)
Which feels more human?
Raise your hand for assistance
Discussion
• Which feels more human?
• Which contains contradiction?
• Which would you design for?
What We Just Saw
• AI smooths
• Humans contradict
• AI predicts
• Humans reveal
Persona A
• (Insert Persona A content)
Persona B
• (Insert Persona B content)
What We
Just Saw
• AI smooths human nuance
• AI predicts and generates pattern
• Humans reveal truths worth
designing for
The Role of the UX Researcher
Empathy guardians
Truth validators
Human interpreters
Designing
Empathy Back
In
• Use real quotes
• Preserve contradiction
• Validate with real users
Why This Matters
If research loses
truth, products
lose trust
Becoming Real
AI can simulate
insight
Only humans
ensure truth
Thank you
Questions
References
Slide 1
Brown, T. (2009). Change by design: How design thinking creates new alternatives for business and society. Harper Business.
https://designthinking.ideo.com/
Slide 2
IDEO. (n.d.). Design thinking: Human-centered innovation. https://designthinking.ideo.com/
Slide 3
Cuthbertson, A. B. (2026). Preserving empathy in AI-augmented UX research: From synthetic personas to human-grounded insight. Aliboo Publishing.
Slide 4
Nielsen Norman Group. (2025). Using AI for UX work: Study guide. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-work-study-guide/
Slide 5
Nielsen Norman Group. (2025). Using AI for UX work: Study guide. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-work-study-guide/
Slide 8
Moran, K. (2024, June 21). Synthetic users: If, when, and how to use AI-generated “research”. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/synthetic-users/
Slide 9
Budiu, R. (2025, February 7). AI hallucinations: What designers need to know. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-
hallucinations/
Slide 10
BBC. (2024, February 22). Air Canada chatbot misinformation: What travellers should know. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20240222-air-
canada-chatbot-misinformation-what-travellers-should-know
Slide 11
Mori, M., MacDorman, K. F., & Kageki, N. (2012). The uncanny valley. IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine, 19(2), 98-100.
https://doi.org/10.1109/MRA.2012.2192811
Slide 12
Budiu, R. (2025, February 7). AI hallucinations: What designers need to know. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-
hallucinations/
Slide 13
Goddard, K., Roudsari, A., & Wyatt, J. C. (2012). Automation bias: A systematic review of frequency, effect mediators, and mitigators. Journal
of the American Medical Informatics Association, 19(1), 121-127. https://doi.org/10.1136/amiajnl-2011-000089
Slide 14
Cuthbertson, A. B. (2026). Preserving empathy in AI-augmented UX research: From synthetic personas to human-grounded insight. Aliboo Publishing.
Slide 15
Nielsen Norman Group. (2025). Using AI for UX work: Study guide. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ai-work-study-guide/
Slide 16
Dourish, P. (2006). Implications for design. Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 541-550.
https://doi.org/10.1145/1124772.1124855
Slide 17
Gibbons, S. (2018, January 14). Empathy mapping: The first step in design thinking. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/empathy-mapping/
Slide 18
Gibbons, S. (2023, February 12). When to use empathy maps: 3 options. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/using-
empathy-maps/
Slide 19
Interaction Design Foundation. (2026). What are personas? https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/personas
Slide 20
Interaction Design Foundation. (2026). What are personas? https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/personas
Slide 21
Moran, K. (2024, June 21). Synthetic users: If, when, and how to use AI-generated “research”. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/synthetic-users/
Slide 22
Gibbons, S. (2018, January 14). Empathy mapping: The first step in design thinking. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/empathy-mapping/
Slide 23
Moran, K. (2025, April 16). Synthetic users: AI “participants”. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/videos/ai-generated-users/
Slide 24
Interaction Design Foundation. (2026). What are personas? https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/personas
Slide 25
Interaction Design Foundation. (2026). What are personas? https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/personas
Slide 26
Moran, K. (2024, June 21). Synthetic users: If, when, and how to use AI-generated “research”. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/synthetic-users/
Slide 27
Cuthbertson, A. B. (2026). Preserving empathy in AI-augmented UX research: From synthetic personas to human-grounded insight. Aliboo Publishing.
Slide 28
Gibbons, S. (2023, February 12). When to use empathy maps: 3 options. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/using-
empathy-maps/
Slide 29
Moran, K. (2025, April 16). Synthetic users: AI “participants”. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/videos/ai-generated-users/
Slide 30
IDEO. (n.d.). Human-centered design. https://www.ideo.com/
Slide 31
Norman, D. A. (2004). Emotional design: Why we love or hate everyday things. Basic Books. https://www.nngroup.com/books/emotional-design/
Slide 32
Cuthbertson, A. B. (2026). Preserving empathy in AI-augmented UX research: From synthetic personas to human-grounded insight. Aliboo Publishing.
Slide 33
Brown, T. (2009). Change by design: How design thinking creates new alternatives for business and society. Harper Business.
https://designthinking.ideo.com/
Slide 34
IDEO. (n.d.). What’s the difference between human-centered design and design thinking? https://designthinking.ideo.com/faq/whats-the-difference-
between-human-centered-design-and-design-thinking
Slide 35
Gibbons, S. (2018, January 14). Empathy mapping: The first step in design thinking. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/empathy-mapping/
Slide 36
Moran, K. (2024, June 21). Synthetic users: If, when, and how to use AI-generated “research”. Nielsen Norman Group.
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/synthetic-users/
Real Example
“When AI gets it almost right.”
• Air Canada chatbot provided incorrect bereavement travel
guidance
• Customer trusted the answer
• The company was held responsible
• The problem wasn't confidence
• The problem was accuracy
• Almost right can still be wrong
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20240222-air-canada-
chatbot-misinformation-what-travellers-should-know