Malte Jung

What makes a team truly great in the era of AI? Is it technical fluency, smarter tools, or something less tangible but more deeply human?

“As we integrate AI into our workplaces, it’s not just changing how we interact with machines. It’s changing how we interact with each other,” explains Malte Jung, associate professor in information science at Cornell University. “We’re only just beginning to understand the social costs and consequences these technologies bring.”

With a rare dual Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and psychology from Stanford University, Jung is at the forefront of understanding how intelligent machines like AI and robotics transform team dynamics. A globally recognized expert on the emotional and relational dynamics of teams and how intelligent machines, from surgical robots to smart speakers, subtly and not-so-subtly reshape them, he draws on years of immersive fieldwork to help leaders understand how to design work environments where humans and machines can thrive together.

“We often think about how the design of systems affects how we interact with them,” says Jung. “But fewer studies focus on how those technologies affect how people interact with each other. That’s where the real impact lies.”

At Cornell, Malte is the founder and leader of InterPlay, a research studio which draws from a wide range of methods to explore the interplay between people and forms of automation. His research in environments spanning operating rooms to hospitality, manufacturing floors, and even major league baseball has pivotal implications for organizations incorporating AI and robotics, bringing executives and leaders, especially those in the HR space, vital insights into maintaining healthy team interactions in technologically advanced work environments. By equipping organizations with practical suggestions for supporting teams’ social health through creative environments and new behaviors, Malte helps teams excel by rethinking their interaction strategies and design processes, ensuring technology enhances their team effectiveness in terms of their instrumental outcomes and team viability, as well as team learning and growth.

Rethink Teamwork with a Strategic Approach to AI in the Workplace

Jung’s approach is grounded in a surprising insight: the same emotional patterns that can predict divorce can also predict performance breakdowns in engineering teams. This finding launched a journey exploring what makes some teams more resilient, innovative and successful, particularly when intelligent machines are introduced.

Whether studying how surgical robots affect collaboration or how smart replies influence perceptions of authenticity, Jung reveals how emotional labor, communication patterns, and trust are transformed when machines become teammates. In doing so, he equips organizations with a profound and practical understanding of what sustains high-performing teams in a tech-enabled world.

“Your toaster, your car, your hotel lighting system — these are all robots now,” he points out. “The question is no longer when and how AI will join your team, because it’s already there. The question is now is ‘how will you design your teams to succeed with these interactions in mind?”

Through vivid storytelling, provocative research and clear design strategies, Jung helps leaders rethink how they implement and design technologies for collaborative work. His framework for team-centered AI implementation draws on real-world examples and original field studies to show leaders how to maintain psychological safety, preserve creative tension and avoid the common pitfalls that lead to disengagement and dysfunction.

Building Better Teams By Design

As today’s leaders are asked to drive transformation, implement AI, and maintain thriving team cultures all at once, Jung’s presentations offer a deeply resonant and actionable guide for meeting that challenge. Whether personally advising Fortune 500 innovation teams or inspiring global HR leaders from the stage, he translates high-level research into powerful new mental models, behaviors and design strategies that can immediately be put into practice. In engaging, future-focused and optimistic sessions, he delivers a blueprint for responsible, effective and human-centric tech integration.

Unforgettable and energizing, Jung ultimately empowers leaders and organizations to turn AI from a disruption into a catalyst that strengthens collaboration, fosters belonging and future-proofs performance for all employees.

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Malte Jung is an associate professor of information science and the Nancy H. ’62 and Philip M. ’62 Young Sesquicentennial Faculty Fellow at Cornell University. His work focuses on the future of work and collaboration involving intelligent machines. He is fascinated by questions about how AI-driven systems such as robots or large language models transform how we interact and collaborate with others.

Jung holds graduate field faculty appointments in the departments of computer science, communication, mechanical engineering and cognitive science. He founded and leads InterPlay, a transdisciplinary research studio that explores the interplay between people and intelligent machines through a wide range of approaches including design research, laboratory studies, and ethnographic fieldwork. 

Jung completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University’s Center for Design Research. He also holds a Ph.D. Minor in Psychology from Stanford and a diploma in Mechanical Engineering from the Technical University of Munich. Before joining Cornell, Jung completed a postdoc at Stanford’s Center for Work, Technology, & Organization.

Malte Jung is available to advise your organization via virtual and in-person consulting meetings, interactive workshops and customized keynotes through the exclusive representation of Stern Speakers & Advisors, a division of Stern Strategy Group®.