GoKawiilWIRED Reporter Builds Gemini-Based AI Clones of Editors, Finds Them Unreliable
A WIRED writer used Google's Gemini platform to create AI chatbots modeled on two of her editors, Brian Barrett and Sophie Kleeman, hoping the clones would help her draft better work and understand her bosses' preferences. The experiment, done with the editors' reluctant permission, quickly produced awkward and unexpected results as the bots misjudged tone and expectations.
The stunt illustrates a broader trend of employees quietly building AI simulations of managers to pre-approve work before it reaches humans, raising questions about trust, authenticity and the real value of such tools in daily office life. It also shows the gap between corporate hype around AI-driven productivity and the messy, unpredictable reality of deploying these systems on real colleagues.
- A WIRED reporter built Gemini-powered AI clones of her two editors to improve her workplace performance.
- The editors agreed reluctantly, and the experiment produced unexpected, awkward outcomes almost immediately.
- The piece reflects a growing informal practice of workers using AI proxies of bosses to refine work before human review.
Source: wired.com — Kate Taylor, 2026-09-22
Published there as: “I Built AI Clones of My Coworkers. Things Got Weird”
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