Why Do Salespeople Go Crazy Over This Cringy AI Sales Tool?

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A new sales tool that can read your mind – is AI going too far?

Just recently, ChatGPT stirred major controversy about potentially replacing content writers in organizations. The AI-powered bot is incredibly advanced, to the point where it can generate an article that is well-written and well-structured in a much shorter amount of time than a human content creator.

This has caused concern among some people that AI technology like ChatGPT may ultimately replace human workers in various industries, including content creation and ideation. The debate over the role of AI in the workplace continues to be a hotly contested topic, with arguments both for and against its implementation.

Now, another AI tool has gone completely viral for its ability to read emotions, perspectives, attitudes, perceptions of social status, power dynamics, and more.

Substrata coins itself as a pioneer in the fields of Social Signal Processing and Pragmatic Analysis. In plain English: it's the closest thing to an AI-powered mind-reading tool for sales/dealmaking purposes. While it’s a fascinating feat at face value, the implications of this next-gen tool may raise some doubts.

Overstepping Boundaries(?)

This technology has two sides to the coin:

1. To help dealmakers read the minds of customers, helping them gear up for their next move.

2. Prospects' thoughts and sentiments are laid bare.

The use of AI tools like Substrata, which are capable of decoding behavior and emotions, can be a little tricky. While it’s technically an AI version of a psychological assessment (and hence doesn’t violate any data privacy laws), it still raises eyebrows among skeptics: Substrata’s ability to analyze both verbal and non-verbal behavioral cues sounds too freaky.

Surely, it’s led by a team of experienced experts, advised by a panel of award-winning researchers, and backed by over a dozen investors, but how it defies science fiction by reading nonverbal cues is a bit too overwhelming.

The cringiest part? The use of Substrata for sales and deal-making purposes can be seen as manipulative: by analyzing customers' emotional states and behavioral cues, the tool can be used to tailor messages and strategies that influence customers' decision-making. This raises questions about whether customers are being treated as autonomous individuals capable of making free choices.

Are they going too far?