Given the attention that AI is receiving lately, it's not surprising to see elevated levels of anxiety among employees and managers in multifamily. However, it's essential to recognize that bots will never replace the human element — here's why.

Bots Don't Have Human Intelligence

AI bots are not approaching human intelligence. Currently, AI is nothing more than a collection of algorithms fed by large amounts of data and processed by powerful computers. That means that even the smartest AI cannot even come close to a human in natural language understanding. AI machines are incapable of common sense, flexible thinking, or empathy. General AI resembling what you see in movies is still not on the horizon as AI is in its infant stages. 

Where Bots Win

AI bots will require a rethink of management practices in multifamily. Now that we concluded that AI is not as smart as humans, let's also agree that AI is better than humans at certain tasks. Bots never get tired, can efficiently talk to multiple people at once, and crush repetitive tasks. The question becomes how to best structure this human and AI coexistence in order to allow humans to concentrate on higher-level tasks while the bots handle the mindless repetitive stuff. It can be a powerful combination. 

Which Is Preferred?

AI is advancing quickly and will provide a competitive advantage for property management companies. Based on where we are today compared to just a few years ago, the progress in AI tools has been nothing short of staggering. Two parallel processes fuel this aggressive advancement. Improvement in AI technology and adoption by end users who have come to prefer interactions with bots vs. humans.

It's important to start exploring solutions as soon as possible because it can take time to find the perfect human/bot balance. However, when done correctly, AI bots can supercharge your organization and improve your interaction with future and current residents. And yes, humans are safe for now. To learn more about the progress of AI, check out how ChatGPT impacts the multifamily industry.