About the AI Empathy Lab

The AI Empathy Lab brings together researchers in marketing, psychology, behavioral science, and computer science to investigate how empathic AI, in the form of assistants, agents, and companions, shapes consumer behavior.

We envision AI agents that embody the key dimensions of human empathy: perspective-taking, emotional resonance, and prosocial motivation. We study when such agents benefit consumers and when they fall short. Informed by this evidence, we guide the design of smarter empathic agents that contribute more positively to society, for example, by adapting their empathy to the context.

Our approach is distinctly experimental, and our medium is the voice. We conduct controlled experiments with real, working AI agents and systematically manipulate the dimensions of their behavior that matter most: the empathy they express, the persuasive strategies they employ, and their capacity to remember.

The Lab grew out of the AI Empathy Research Initiative, established in 2024 with the support of the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich. It has since evolved into an international research group bridging Europe and the Middle East, dedicated to advancing the science of AI empathy in consumer contexts.

Our findings speak to three audiences. For managers, our work guides the design of more effective, human-centric AI experiences in retail, service, and healthcare. For policymakers, it builds the evidence base needed to assess AI's influence on personal choices and shape sensible regulation. For society, it illuminates both the promise and the perils of machines designed to understand how we feel.