At the Transform 2025 conference, a groundbreaking initiative quietly began to reshape the future of Talent Acquisition: the first in-person gathering of the Human-Centric AI Council (HCAIC). Kyle Lagunas, Head of Strategy and Principal Analyst at Aptitude Research, formed the council in response to the rapidly accelerating pace of AI adoption in HR and Talent Acquisition (TA). Lagunas brought together a group of respected voices across the TA, HR, and technology ecosystems to discuss best practices for using AI responsibly, ethically, and effectively.
The council aims to cut through the noise and hype surrounding AI to offer practical perspectives from those who are actively shaping its implementation. Below, we share predictions and advice from 10 members of the Human-Centric AI Council. Each offers a unique view into how AI is transforming the world of work and what TA leaders should do to stay ahead.
1. Kyle Lagunas
How AI will impact TA
“AI is changing everything—and it’s not even dramatic to say that, even though it feels dramatic. Historically, we’ve used AI to streamline or automate processes to move faster and introduce efficiencies. Those opportunities still exist. But now, AI is changing how work gets done. It’s changing who does what—some of it is human, some of it is bots.
We have to ask: What are the new roles and responsibilities of a TA practitioner? What is the function of TA? Are we process people or relationship people? We’re at a precipice. We can be disrupted—or we can disrupt. And I want to make sure we’re in the driver’s seat.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Don’t go it alone. No single person has all the answers. That’s the whole point of this council—collective wisdom.”
2. Sarah Smart
How AI will impact TA
“There’s a lot of innovation entering the HR space around AI—and a tremendous amount already in TA. There’s a lack of maturity in some places, and accelerated maturity in others. It’s time to get everyone on an even playing field.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Don’t get distracted. Focus on your business case and focus on your use case. Understand what your business opportunities are—whether it’s solving challenges or leapfrogging into better ways of working.
Learn your tech. Understand the support network you’ll need to thoughtfully implement AI inside of your organization.”
3. Rachel Bourne
How AI will impact TA
“AI in Talent Acquisition has incredible implications, from candidate experience through operations and into onboarding and as people become talent into a company. Thinking about that full ecosystem is incredibly important—and doing it fairly and responsibly.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Don’t be afraid to say you don’t know something. Find the people who’ve been doing it and can help you do it fairly, responsibly, and with a really good return on investment.”
4. Bob Pulver
How AI will impact TA
“It’s already in almost every phase of the talent life cycle. We really need to understand what that means—the implications for our roles, how this is going to impact our decision-making process, how we evaluate people fairly.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Gain some AI literacy—what I call your AIQ. Use it in the appropriate ways, not just anywhere you can, but where you really should. Ask tough questions when you start evaluating AI solutions and AI vendors.”
5. Lydia Wu
How AI will impact TA
“We are shifting the volume of work that is going to get done in Talent Acquisition. How we look at the future of AI-enabled and assisted talent will be fundamentally different.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Understand your technical infrastructure—your data infrastructure—because all AI companies are data companies. To do AI properly, you need solid data input to train your AI models accordingly.”
6. Tara Torres
How AI will impact TA
“We have to be really thoughtful about the approach we take—not just force-fit this new technology into an existing process. Think about the capabilities that are available to us with this technology in play. Then make sure that we’re preparing the workforce appropriately—through reskilling, redeployment, transitional services.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Incorporate the end-user point of view early into the design process. There’s nobody closer to the candidate or hiring manager than the TA pros working with them every day.”
7. Trent Cotton
How AI will impact TA
“Recruiters will become talent advisors. I foresee us managing HR AI agents who are doing a lot of the back-end stuff, and we’re able to spend more time advising internal and external talent.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Try it. Don’t be afraid. Start with ChatGPT, go to Gemini, leverage YouTube. There’s so much free content out there. That curiosity is going to help you evolve and become the talent advisor of the future.”
8. Jonathan Reyes
How AI will impact TA
“The work that we’re doing today is going to be done differently tomorrow. Yes, AI brings efficiency and displacement—but also new job creation and the shaping of new roles.”
Advice for TA leaders
“You don’t always know what it’s going to look like at the end. You’ve got to let yourself navigate this more and be open to the experience. Maybe you are going to fail—and that’s okay.”
9. Brenna Lenoir
How AI will impact TA
“AI will free up our time so we can create more human connection and do the things that humans are good at—while AI agents handle the repetitive work.”
Advice for TA leaders
“If you haven’t already, embrace it. Start experimenting in your day-to-day tasks. Getting comfortable with AI starts small. Then think bigger and roll it out more broadly.”
10. Ahryun Moon
How AI will impact TA
“AI will automate away mundane work. The rest—strategic thinking, high-level problem solving—will be left for humans. It will elevate the experience for candidates, interviewers, hiring managers, and the TA team.”
Advice for TA leaders
“Don’t adopt AI for the sake of it. Start with the business case, define the transformation you want, then think about how to use AI to elevate that process.”
Take the next step
From freeing up time for human connection to redesigning what work means altogether, AI is already redefining the future of Talent Acquisition. TA leaders who embrace this moment thoughtfully and collaboratively will shape the future of hiring.
Want to explore how you can lead the way with AI in your hiring practices? Connect with the experts at CodeSignal to start the conversation.