The Leaders We Want to Follow Lead with Radical Humanity

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WHEN Johann Wolfgang von Kempelen unveiled his chess-playing automaton in the courts of 18th-century Europe, audiences were spellbound. The “Mechanical Turk” was the first machine that appeared to think like a human. It beat anyone it played against, regardless of their playing abilities or social status. For decades, it toured the world as proof that human intelligence had finally been replicated by a machine.

It took bribery to finally get von Kempelen to reveal the secret of his unbeatable machine. Hidden inside the cabinet, crouched among gears and pulleys, sat a human chess master. The intelligence had never been artificial. It had just been concealed.

This may be an old and well-known story, but its lessons haven’t stuck. Today, we’re once again mesmerized by machines that appear to think, speak, decide, and even lead. From algorithmic hiring tools to AI-generated strategies — even to AI “CEOs” — leadership is being reframed as optimization, speed, and polish. While many see the danger of AI as machines becoming more human, the real danger is that human leaders are becoming more mechanical.

In the age of AI, the leaders who matter most will be the ones who lead most like humans, precisely when too many leaders are acting as if they, too, are automated. Just like the automaton, perfection looks impressive from a distance until you can see, up close, that it’s hollow.

The more polished leaders become, the more people worry about what they have to hide. This is why the future of leadership belongs to those who are prepared to be radically human. It belongs to those who hesitate, question, doubt, regret, and care. It’s these attributes that constitute the raw material of trust.

For decades, we’ve tried to be predictable, efficient, emotionless, and certain. We’ve confused clarity with certainty and polish with credibility. Leaders are compelled to hide the very elements that make people want to follow them.

Radical humanity asks for the opposite. It asks leaders to stay present rather than performative, curious rather than certain, courageous rather than compliant. It asks them to resist the illusion that confidence is the absence of doubt, or that authority comes from having all the answers.

The Mechanical Turk fooled Europe because people believed intelligence could be detached from messy humanity. We want to believe the same thing today. But leadership isn’t perfection. Leadership is judgment, presence, and moral courage in an imperfect world populated by imperfect people living imperfect lives. That’s why the future of leadership will never belong to those who sound most like machines. The future belongs to those who are willing to sound unmistakably human.

Here are five actions leaders must take if they want to remain credible and trusted in an AI-saturated world.

1. Show your workings, not just your answers. I learned at school that to get marks you had to show your workings. A confident answer without any context only breeds suspicion. As a leader, show how you think, where you hesitate, and the dilemmas you’re grappling with. Vulnerability increases credibility just as fake certainty destroys it.

2. Say “I don’t know” sooner than you feel comfortable. “But if I say I don’t know, won’t they wonder why I’m paid more than them?” was the reply to me when sharing this tip with a client. But showing uncertainty demonstrates value. By signalling honesty and inviting contribution, you create safety in a way that hiding doubt or giving a polished answer never could.

3. Stand still when pressure demands speed. AI optimizes for immediacy. But while everyone can think fast and AI faster, no one can reflect quickly. Leadership has always required discernment. Pausing to sense emotions, tensions, and ethical trade-offs is a human advantage, not a weakness. Married with tip 2, it’s a superpower.

4. Stand up for what’s right, not just what’s expedient. You will be remembered for what you tolerated way more than for what you did. Standing up for what’s right is what people will remember long after the results themselves have been forgotten.

5. Design culture through presence. Belonging is created in how leaders show up, listen, and respond under pressure. Culture isn’t designed, declared, or demanded. It’s experienced. Be in the moment wherever you are.

The Mechanical Turk eventually lost its mystique. Born in the courts of Europe, it was finally laid to rest in its fairgrounds. The illusion collapsed as the truth became known.

There’s no doubt that AI will continue to improve. Systems always become faster, smoother, and more convincing. But leadership was never meant to be mechanized. The uncertainties, emotions, and imperfections we are tempted to remove in the face of machine-like precision are precisely the qualities that allow trust, responsibility, and belonging to exist at all and the truth to emerge.

The future of leadership isn’t artificial. It has to be alive.

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Emmanuel Gobillot is among the world’s foremost thinkers and authorities on leadership. Described as “the first leadership guru for the digital generation” and “the freshest voice in leadership today,” he provides consulting to CEOs across countries and industries. A sought-after speaker, he has authored 10 UK and US bestselling books. His new book is Alive Inside: Unlock Your Leadership Advantage in the Age of AI (Routledge, Jan. 22, 2026). Learn more at emmanuelgobillot.com.

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