AI Doesn’t Have Spidey Sense (And That’s a Problem)
Artificial intelligence can write emails, analyze data sets in seconds, flag anomalies, and predict trends with impressive accuracy. It can beat chess grandmasters, diagnose diseases, and optimize supply chains.
But AI can’t do this:
That quiet “something feels off” moment.
The instinct that says “we should slow down.”
The gut check that prevents a small issue from becoming a headline.
AI doesn’t have spidey sense. Humans do.
And in risk, ethics, and governance, that matters more than most people realize.
AI Is Great at Patterns. Humans Are Great at Meaning.
AI excels at identifying patterns in historical data. Feed it enough information, and it will tell you what usually happens next.
But many of the biggest business failures didn’t happen because the data was missing. They happened because someone ignored a human signal:
An employee felt uncomfortable but didn’t speak up
A leader sensed pressure to “just get it done”
A deal looked good on paper but felt rushed
A vendor technically complied, but culturally didn’t fit
Those moments don’t always show up in dashboards.
They show up in people.
The Most Expensive Risks Rarely Announce Themselves
Ask any seasoned executive, compliance officer, or operations leader how a crisis started, and you’ll often hear something like:
“We had a bad feeling early on.”
“Someone raised a concern, but it wasn’t escalated.”
“It didn’t break a rule… but it didn’t feel right.”
AI systems are not built to interpret discomfort, hesitation, fear, or ethical tension. They don’t read body language in meetings. They don’t notice tone shifts in emails. They don’t feel the weight of reputational risk.
Humans do.
Gut Feelings Aren’t Anti-Data. They’re Pre-Data.
There’s a misconception that intuition and analytics are opposites. They’re not.
A gut feeling is often early pattern recognition, informed by experience, context, and values, before the data is fully formed or measurable.
Think of gut instincts as:
Early warning systems
Cultural smoke detectors
Ethical pressure gauges
AI usually kicks in after something can be measured. Human intuition often kicks in before it becomes obvious.
The smartest organizations don’t choose between AI and human judgment. They design systems where both are required.
Where AI Still Needs Humans Most
AI can support risk management, but it cannot replace:
Ethical decision-making
Contextual judgment
Cultural awareness
Moral accountability
Responsibility when things go wrong
When an algorithm makes a bad call, people still answer for it.
Which means organizations need governance structures that:
Encourage speaking up
Respect professional judgment
Balance automation with human oversight
Treat ethics as a feature, not a limitation
The Real Risk Is Outsourcing Judgment
The danger isn’t using AI.
The danger is turning off human discernment because “the system didn’t flag it.”
That’s how small issues become crises.
That’s how culture erodes quietly.
That’s how organizations lose trust.
AI doesn’t feel consequences.
People do.
Better Together
AI is a powerful tool.
Human intuition is a critical control.
The future of responsible business isn’t AI or humans; it’s AI governed by humans who are empowered to trust their judgment.
Because when something feels off, and the dashboard says everything is fine…
That’s usually when you should pay attention.
Looking to build AI governance that leaves room for human judgment, ethics, and accountability? At Ross & Schuda, we help organizations design risk, compliance, and AI governance frameworks that combine advanced tools with something no machine has yet mastered: good judgment.
Your gut still matters.
