Hybrid work gets new meaning: human plus AI

Five years after the Covid-19 pandemic ushered in the era of hybrid work — combining home and office — the term has a new meaning: human plus AI. A Cisco study, released this week at a company event in San Diego, reveals that “hybrid” has evolved from a location discussion to a collaboration model.

This is being reflected in how companies build workplaces, manage infrastructure and rethink security as AI becomes a team member. It is also reshaping how we think about the very nature of work. And it’s a shift that’s just beginning, according to the Cisco Global Hybrid Work Study 2025.

Cisco surveyed more than 16,000 employees and 1,500 employers globally and revealed a startling new reality: 60% of employers say hybrid work refers to collaboration between humans and AI, and is no longer only about splitting time between office and home.

Francine Katsoudas, Cisco’s chief people, policy and purpose officer, says the workplace playbook is being rewritten.

“The workplace is going to have a fundamental augmentation of agents and robots and Internet of Things devices,” she said in a panel discussion at the event.

The shift, she said, was not merely a technological upgrade, but a human capability challenge: “The more that we can help people get started, the more confidence they will build. It’s a muscle. I think AI is a muscle that we have to build.”

Katsoudas told Business Times: “My new colleague is AI, and I need to work with my new teammate to get things done. I think we are moving into a mode where there is so much agility and flexibility. The way in which work is going to be done is going to be part human, part AI.”

During the panel, she described the opportunity for AI to clear the clutter: “We’re seeing this wonderful opportunity with AI to take out some of the noise, so that we can really focus on what matters. And I think the challenge for us is, how do we teach people the types of questions to ask? How do we give people a sense of confidence?”

Anurag Dhingra, Cisco chief technology officer for collaboration, said AI’s real value lies in context-aware support.

The true power is when those tools work across platforms: when your note-taker understands your meeting history, your working style, and can provide the context you need

—  Anurag Dhingra, Cisco chief technology officer for collaboration

“We talk about these new AI tools like summarisation and transcription. But the true power is when those tools work across platforms: when your note-taker understands your meeting history, your working style, and can provide the context you need without you asking for it.”

Christian Bigsby, Cisco director of workplace experience, told the panel that physical environments were evolving alongside digital ones.

“What we’re doing with our own offices is creating space where the experience leads. We’re measuring occupancy, noise, air quality — but it’s not just for facilities. That data is powering decisions about how teams use space, when to come in, and how we can support flexibility without sacrificing culture,” he said.

Katsoudas pointed to Cisco’s Johannesburg office as a case in point: “There’s so much about that centre that is all about energy savings and how we can be so thoughtful about our usage of energy. So, in some cases, we can take some of the infrastructure challenges and actually make them very compelling selling points for our customers as well.”

The hybrid work study showed that the workplace itself had regained its importance, revealing “a clear, global trend toward increased in-office work”, with the percentage of respondents with home-and-office work arrangements decreasing from 62% in 2022 to 45% in 2025.

“Notably, respondents report positive impacts from these changes, especially in the areas of productivity, innovation, culture, and employee engagement,” the study found.

However, the study found that 80% of employees want technology that helps them “work smarter, not longer”. And 66% of employers said they believed AI will be essential to achieving meaningful productivity gains over the next two years.   

• Arthur Goldstuck is author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI.