The recent Emerging Technology and Generative AI Forum highlighted how AI is transforming professional services through strategic integration, human oversight, ethical considerations, and a focus on client-centric innovation
Key takeaways:
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Human oversight & ethical standards are essential — Successful AI integration in professional services requires strong human oversight and clear ethical guidelines to ensure trust, accuracy, and responsible innovation.
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Client-centric strategies drive value — Organizations should align AI adoption with specific business objectives and client needs, focusing on pragmatic data organization and workflow improvements rather than pursuing technology for its own sake.
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Agentic AI & human-in-the-loop learning are transforming workflows — The rise of agentic AI systems and human-in-the-loop machine learning is enabling more adaptive, efficient, and innovative solutions, but these technologies must be carefully managed to balance automation with human expertise.
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AUSTIN, Texas — As professional service organizations stand at an unprecedented inflection point, AI has evolved from a promising technology to a force fundamentally reshaping how they deliver value to clients.
The Thomson Reuters Institute’s (TRI’s) recent 2025 Emerging Technology and Generative AI Forum delved deeper into this situation, bringing together industry leaders, technologists, academics, and visionaries to explore the transformative impact of AI on professional services.
The current state of AI in professional services
The Forum’s opening panel, Hello World! The State of Emerging Technology and Generative AI, set the stage by emphasizing that the most value in AI lies in data consistency, gradual digital transformation, and human oversight during implementation. A striking statistic that emerged from the discussion showed that in a recent survey 91% of service professionals say they believe AI should be held to higher accuracy standards than human work. This underscores a critical reality — trust and data protection remain paramount concerns across the board.
Panelists highlighted the importance of aligning AI strategies with specific business objectives to maximize value creation. Indeed, they explained, rather than pursuing AI adoption for its own sake, organizations must focus on prioritizing the critical factors that make implementation possible while harnessing AI’s potential to secure the positive change and innovation that the technology promises.
Exploring agentic AI systems
The second panel, AI on Autopilot: Exploring the Rise of Agentic AI and Its Potential within Professional Services, delved into one of the most exciting frontiers in AI development. Panelists discussed how professional service leaders need to adjust expectations surrounding AI’s capabilities chiefly by breaking down complex problems into manageable chunks and benchmarking AI’s impact with quantifiable data.
In fact, a recurring theme throughout the Forum was the critical importance of keeping humans in the loop. Panelists emphasized that AI agents do their best work with sufficient oversight, and organizational leaders must understand risk factors before deploying AI agents in production environments, especially those involving any client-facing matters.
The conversation also touched upon alternative fee arrangements, examining AI’s dual role as both assistants and autonomous agents and how professional service leaders need to harmonize technology with elevated workflow management.
Human-in-the-loop learning
Prof. Peter Stone, Truchard Foundation Chair in Computer Science at the University of Texas–Austin and Chief Scientist at Sony AI, delivered a compelling keynote at the Forum, titled Human-in-the-Loop: Machine Learning for Robot Navigation and Manipulation. Prof. Stone’s research explores how to create autonomous intelligent agents that adapt, interact, and embody complex, human-like behaviors. He also has demonstrated these capabilities through engaging videos of robots playing soccer and mastering Tetris.
Prof. Stone’s work has significant implications for various applications, including healthcare and manufacturing — fields in which intelligent robotic systems can transform operational efficiency and innovation. His emphasis on the importance of training with the human-in-the-loop has clearly shown that we remain in the nascent stages of agentic machine learning, despite such vast development over the past decade.
Client-centric technology strategy
The panel, Wired for Success: Creating a Forward Focused, Client Centric Technology Strategy, explored how professional services firms can develop technology strategies that both enhance client engagement and drive value creation. Panelists emphasized the need to ensure that AI’s work is thoroughly checked, treating the innovative technology like any other employee.
Panelists also acknowledged the challenge of organizing data prior to implementing the technology but determined that this particular technology doesn’t need to be perfect to accelerate workflows. Rather, organizational leaders only need to ensure their metrics reflect a realistic qualification of value. This pragmatic approach recognizes that organizing data to make it AI-compatible — particularly in the legal technology industry — are essential steps in the journey toward effective AI adoption.
Ethical considerations in AI development
The final panel, A Unified Field: Ethical Considerations amid AI Development and Deployment, tackled one of the most critical aspects of AI adoption: The need for a strong ethical foundation for AI use. Panelists underscored the need for organizations to establish clear guidelines and harness diverse perspectives for ethical AI practices.
As AI continues to evolve in highly personal applications like facial recognition technology, ethical decisions become less straightforward. The panel delved into questions about the next generation’s interaction with AI, including whether it is ethical to harness AI to teach children through new educational approaches
Panelists also emphasized that ethical AI is a collective responsibility that falls on all users’ shoulders, setting the stage for a future in which AI development is both responsible and visionary.
The AI-enabled path forward
TRI’s 2025 Emerging Technology and Generative AI Forum firmly established that successful AI implementation requires more than technological sophistication — it demands a holistic approach that encompasses data strategy, talent development, client engagement, and unwavering commitment to ethical standards. The future of professional services will be defined not by whether firms adopt AI, but by how thoughtfully and strategically they integrate these transformative technologies into their core operations.
The insights shared throughout the Forum further underscore a fundamental truth: As professional services firms navigate this transformation, the frameworks and strategies discussed provide a roadmap for sustainable innovation that enhances rather than replaces human expertise. The ethical considerations discussed are not merely compliance requirements but rather fundamental principles that will determine whether AI serves as a force for positive transformation or something else entirely.
Forum attendees took away how important it is to harness AI’s potential while maintaining the trust, transparency, and human judgment that clients expect from their most critical business partnerships. Indeed, the path ahead requires continued collaboration, shared learning, and collective commitment to responsible innovation that truly serves humanity’s best interests.
To dive deeper into these insights and understand the strategic implications for your organization, we invite you to download the full Emerging Technology and Generative AI Forum Executive Summary here
