At SPARK 2026, more than 150 C-suite executives and senior business leaders explored how AI and changing employee expectations are redefining leadership, learning and development.
What happens when employees have a question at 10 p.m., need to prepare for a difficult conversation before their next meeting, or want to think through a career decision before speaking to their manager? Increasingly, they turn to AI.
This shift was among the key conversations at WeAce ‘s SPARK 2026, in association with Axis Bank, an annual, invite-only leadership event. In this edition, SPARK brought together 150+ C-suite executives and senior business leaders from leading organizations, including Airtel, GMR, NABFID, HSBC, Marriott, SDA Bocconi and TransUnion, among others.
Against the broader theme of LIFE – Living Intentionally, Fully, Every Day, leaders at SPARK explored how technology, changing generational expectations and evolving definitions of success are reshaping how people work, learn and grow.
One emerging opportunity is AI-powered coaching and mentoring, giving employees access to guidance in the moments they need it, alongside formal development programmes and human conversations.
According to Deloitte’s 2026 Gen Z and Millennial Survey (India Profile), AI adoption has reached near-universal levels, with 93% of Gen Zs and 95% of millennials in India using AI in their day-to-day work. Over 90% report a positive impact across their personal and professional lives, heavily relying on AI to discover learning opportunities (86% Gen Z, 88% millennials) and seek career advice (92% Gen Z, 93% millennials).
However, technology has not replaced the need for human guidance: half of Indian millennials cite a lack of leadership support as a major workplace stressor, underscoring that human connection, clear mentorship, and structured leadership pathways remain essential in an AI-driven workforce.
This gap presents an opportunity for AI to become an additional layer of support, not replacing human mentoring, but making development more continuous and accessible.
“AI is creating an interesting new dimension for mentoring. Employees can now access guidance in the moment, whether they are preparing for a difficult conversation, considering a career decision, or simply trying to better understand a situation. The opportunity is not to make mentoring less human, but to make it more continuous and accessible. AI can extend the reach of mentoring, while human mentors continue to bring experience, context, empathy and perspective,” said Anuranjita Kumar, Founder & CEO, WeAce.
This is where WeAce’s Nexa – AI coach and mentor, fits into the employee development journey. Nexa helps employees reflect on experiences, prepare difficult conversations, explore career decisions, and build confidence before taking action.
The model emerging from these conversations is not AI versus humans, but AI plus humans.
For organizations, this raises a critical question: if employees are already turning to AI for guidance, how can organizations ensure that this support is purposeful, responsible, and connected to their wider talent strategy?
It also signals a changing role for HR, from designing periodic development interventions to creating environments where learning, feedback, reflection, and growth can happen continuously.
SPARK 2026 reinforced that the future of workplace development will not be defined by technology alone. The opportunity lies in combining AI-powered access with the human experience, judgement and connection that remain at the heart of coaching, mentoring and leadership development.
The next evolution of mentoring may therefore be less about scheduled conversations and more about creating a continuous ecosystem of support available at the moment employees need it.
Source: Business Wire India
