Podcast Summary: Insights Unlocked

Episode: "Why empathy still wins in an AI-powered world"

Guest: Sara Fortier, Founder & CEO of Outwitly
Host: Nathan Isaacs, Principal Content Marketing Manager, UserTesting
Date: October 20, 2025
Episode Length: ~33 minutes

Episode Overview

This episode explores the enduring importance of human-centered design and empathy in a rapidly advancing, AI-powered world. Sara Fortier—veteran design strategist and author of "Design Research Mastery"—shares her journey and practical wisdom on scaling empathetic design in large organizations. Topics include stakeholder buy-in, the proper use of synthetic users, balancing qualitative and quantitative insights, the future of UX/CX professions, and actionable strategies for teams to thrive as AI augments design research.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Sara’s Path to Human-Centered Design (01:32 - 03:54)

• Background: Sara originally studied industrial design but pivoted to human-centered and UX design after realizing her passion was more about solving real-life problems than creating physical products.
• Personal Influence: Sara credits her father’s keen eye for bad customer experiences as motivating her to improve service and product interactions for others.
• Lasting Passion: The endless variety and real-world impact of design challenges keep her engaged:

  “It's so wonderful, like trying to solve problems... It never gets boring. There's always something else to figure out.” – Sara Fortier (03:08)

2. Defining Human-Centered Design (04:11 - 05:19)

• Process: Focuses on solving real user problems by incorporating end-user voices through interviews, observation, and iterative prototyping.
• Impact: Ensures products and services (from digital apps to in-person interactions like renewing a license) are aligned with actual human needs.
• Connective tissue:

  “Human centered design just puts humans at the center... you're talking to them, you're interviewing them, you're trying to understand their challenges, their motivations.” – Sara Fortier (04:18)

3. The Role of Empathy in an AI-Powered World (05:37 - 08:22)

• AI’s Limitations: While AI excels at automation and data analysis, it cannot mirror true empathy or decipher the messy complexity of real human needs.
• Design’s Critical Role: Empathy and context-driven research create the insights that AI alone cannot.

  “AI is never going to be empathetic. It's never going to also understand the complexities of human nature...” – Sara Fortier (05:52)

• AI as an Enabler: When used well, AI frees up human designers and researchers to focus on deeper, discovery-based work.

4. Stakeholder Buy-In and Building Trust (10:13 - 15:07)

• Lessons Learned: Initially, Sara thought beautiful deliverables and technical language would sway stakeholders. She learned that what truly matters are business results tied to user insight.
• Effective Communication:
  • Speak the stakeholder’s language, avoid design jargon.
  • Identify and address their specific pain points.
  • Demonstrate value through tangible business improvements (e.g., reduced churn, faster adoption).
• Trust-Building:
  • Start with small wins.
  • Be responsive and reliable.
  • Once trust is established, propose larger design initiatives for maximum impact.

  “It's really about identifying the pain... and then give them a solution.” – Sara Fortier (11:11) “It's combining business acumen and...making sure that what you're doing is aligned to the business needs...” – Sara Fortier (14:10)

5. Focus & Prioritization in Research (13:27 - 15:49)

• Common Trap: Discovery research often uncovers many problems, risking diluted focus and stakeholder overwhelm.

  “You do uncover so much stuff, and then sometimes you can fall in love with the stuff... and then your stakeholders are there listening, like, what's the point?” – Sara Fortier (14:10)

• Strategy: Keep research closely aligned to business priorities. Present additional findings as future opportunities, not distractions.

6. Synthetic Users and AI-Simulated Personas (15:49 - 19:16)

• Utility: Synthetic users work best when they’re powered by rich, real qualitative data (not just online reviews or blog-derived info).

  “Where I feel like they could be very useful is if you have done quite a bit of research already… then I think that can be really powerful...” – Sara Fortier (16:18)

• Risks: Over-reliance on synthetic users without real foundational research leads to weak insights and potential errors (“garbage in, garbage out”).

  “If you're just using something you find online... you're just going to get some random stuff... It's been trained on somebody's blog post...” – Nathan Isaacs (18:07) “It still lies... if you're asking it those questions about somebody else... it can still lie to you.” – Sara Fortier (18:30)

7. Pitfalls of Over-Relying on AI (19:37 - 21:02)

• Quantitative vs. Qualitative: AI is great with quantitative scaling, but meaningful design insights arise from deep qualitative engagement.
• Shortcuts: Tools that promise “personas out of nothing” often lack substance. True innovation requires real conversations.

8. Optimizing With AI: Freeing Time & Demonstrating Value (21:51 - 23:24; 30:14 - 34:12)

• Use AI to streamline:
  • Recruitment
  • Summarizing interviews/transcripts
  • Data analysis and thematic coding
  • A/B testing support
• What to Do With Saved Time: Invest it in work that matters—deeper discovery, stakeholder workshops, or activating findings across the business.

  “If you can then bring to your higher ups, hey, like I saved 40 hours out of a six week project... That's a lot of money.” – Sara Fortier (32:08)

• Proactive Mindset: Don’t just “do more”; show leadership by reinvesting time in high-value initiatives (e.g., discovery projects, action workshops).

9. Next-Generation Designer Advice (23:49 - 27:21)

• AI Literacy: Embrace new tools and know when/how to use them strategically.
• Business Acumen: Understand ROI, connect design efforts to business outcomes.
• Soft Skills:
  • Empathy and emotional intelligence
  • Storytelling: Present findings as narratives that inspire action
  • Stakeholder communication and management
  • Strategic thinking

  “There's so much more that we need to be... empathetic and emotionally intelligent... communicate with your stakeholders and really understand where they're coming from…” – Sara Fortier (25:31) “How you connect to someone emotionally and get them excited about a change, that's human.” – Sara Fortier (27:15)

10. The Future of Human-Centered Design (27:34 - 29:45)

• Broader Trends: Service design (end-to-end experience across digital, physical, and human touchpoints) is set to become more prominent.
• Optimism Amidst Change: Jobs will evolve (not disappear). Human-centered designers will become vital bridges between people and increasingly complex technology.

  “I'm excited for our industry to... talk about the business needs and not just about how fun the research is.” – Sara Fortier (28:20) “How are we going to get creative about being the people there that can act as this bridge between technology and humans?” – Sara Fortier (28:46)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On empathy’s irreplaceability:

  "AI is never going to be empathetic. Right. It's never going to also understand the complexities of human nature."
  — Sara Fortier (05:52)

• On building influence:

  “If you actually start from, you know, what's in it for them... and build this trust with them, so that when I do make a recommendation, they're listening to me.”
  — Sara Fortier (12:19)

• On AI saving time:

  "If you can then bring to your higher ups, 'Hey, like, I saved 40 hours out of a six week project... you just saved them, like, one week out of six weeks. That's a lot of money.'"
  — Sara Fortier (32:08)

• On what AI can't (yet) do:

  “How you connect to someone emotionally and get them excited about a change, that's human.”
  — Sara Fortier (27:15)

Important Timestamps

• 01:41 – 03:54: Sara’s journey into human-centered design
• 04:11 – 05:19: Defining human-centered design
• 05:37 – 08:22: Why empathy matters in the age of AI
• 10:13 – 15:07: Winning stakeholder buy-in and trust
• 15:49 – 19:16: Uses and limitations of synthetic users
• 19:37 – 21:02: Dangers of over-relying on AI tools
• 23:49 – 27:21: Career advice for new designers in an AI world
• 27:34 – 29:45: The future of human-centered/service design
• 30:14 – 34:12: Making AI-driven efficiency matter to the business

Actionable Takeaways

• Translate research findings into clear business value (reduce jargon, show outcomes).
• Use AI to eliminate repetitive tasks, but protect the core function of nuanced, empathetic human research.
• Build trust with stakeholders—small wins lead to bigger opportunities.
• Invest saved time in turning research into action and influencing organizational priorities.
• New designers should work on AI skills, business sense, stakeholder management, and storytelling.

For more resources or to learn about Sara Fortier’s new book or work at Outwitly, visit outwitly.com or follow her on LinkedIn.

This summary captures the episode’s essence, providing both a roadmap for teams seeking to balance AI and empathy, and actionable recommendations for design and research professionals at any stage in their career.