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Empathy is the next frontier in AI – and its greatest security risk

Artificial intelligence’s growing ability to read and respond to human emotions is reshaping user trust, making APIs critical for securing human-machine interaction

Summarise
    • In an AI-driven future, trust will be the most valuable currency we have. Securing it will require constant innovation, and a redefinition of what safety means in emotional systems.
    • In an AI-driven future, trust will be the most valuable currency we have. Securing it will require constant innovation, and a redefinition of what safety means in emotional systems. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

    Mohan Veloo

    Published Wed, Oct 1, 2025 · 07:00 AM

    IMAGINE an artificial intelligence (AI) companion that can detect frustration in your voice during a customer service call. Or sense loneliness in a senior citizen’s tone and offer comfort.

    This is empathic AI: systems designed to perceive, interpret, and respond to human emotions in real time. It’s not just a technical leap. It’s an emotional contract.

    And in the Asia-Pacific, where empathic AI is being rolled out at unprecedented scale, that contract is becoming a new attack surface.

    Artificial IntelligenceCybersecurity

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