In recent years, right-leaning leaders in politics and tech like Donald Trump and Elon Musk have attacked the value of DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives. But for Elise Smith, the CEO and co-founder of the tech startup Praxis Labs, learning to navigate cultural differences is simply good business, especially for ambitious multinational companies with employees and clients around the world. “Regardless of what you think about the term DEI, this work will continue, because fundamentally it does drive better business outcomes,” says Smith, 34. “Fortune 500 companies are trying to figure out: How do we serve our clients and customers, knowing that there’s a ton of diversity within them? How do we bring our teams together to do their best work?”
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Praxis creates interactive AI and VR tools that allow business leaders to practice and improve their workplace communication and better interact with employees. These tools are something like the next-generation iterations of corporate diversity training videos, with many modules specifically designed to help managers give feedback to underperformers, navigate divisive topics like bias, and ask better questions. Users interact with a generative AI chatbot that simulates high-pressure work scenarios, such as performance reviews or interpersonal disagreements. The chatbot then provides personalized guidance on how one might better handle situations, especially with regard to cultural sensitivities. While it is currently confined to a specific set of scenarios, Smith hopes the chatbot will receive an upgrade this year that allows it to be “always-on” and freely give advice about workplace concerns.
“You can’t play basketball by just watching a video in theory about passing and shooting—you have to do it,” Smith says. “Learning these critical human skills is very similar. You have to do it in a simulated, experiential way that will truly translate to your ability in the moment when it matters.”
Smith cut her teeth at IBM’s Watson Group in the early 2010s, strategizing how to apply the AI technology powering that early supercomputer toward education. Inspired by that experience as well as watching her parents navigate systems that weren’t set up for them, she founded Praxis alongside Heather Shen in 2018. (Shen was named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list this year.) Praxis has now raised $23 million worth of venture capital and has a staff of around 15 people, and its client list includes Uber, Amazon, and Accenture. The goal, Smith says, is to help these companies to improve employee engagement, retention, and global business relationships.
Smith believes that in a world in which AI tools are growing increasingly powerful in performing mechanical tasks, soft skills like clear communication, emotional intelligence, and the ability to defuse conflict are more important than ever. “We have to connect at a real, personal level, beyond the transactional trust that I think we so often find in workplaces,” she says. “We are so divided, and yet we have to learn to work with people who think differently than us and believe in different things than us, to achieve outcomes that hopefully better all of us.”
