-2.png)
This is the third in a three-part series recapping our salon event, “The Future of Reputation in the Age of AI,” hosted at Highwire’s San Francisco office on November 12, 2025.
AI is not just changing what communicators do, it’s changing what people believe. From regulators and reporters to internal teams and consumers, trust is in flux. And for reputation leaders, that means new responsibilities, new skeptics, and new ways to engage.
This part of the conversation made one thing clear: in the age of AI, trust is earned at the intersection of transparency, simplicity, and inclusion. Below are five key takeaways from our panel.
2. Internal Alignment Is as Important as External Messaging
David McCulloch of PG&E reflected on the challenge of team adoption:
“Unless you bring all of your team along, you're going to create the haves and the have-nots. The passionate and the afraid.”
McCulloch acknowledged that his own enthusiasm sometimes underestimated team concerns. For example, he became enthusiastic about the potential for synthetic focus groups, comprised of agents, to test messaging and advertising.
“I said to the person who runs focus groups, ‘This is going to save us a ton of money!’ She didn’t look quite as impressed.”
Communicators must lead change not only with optimism, but with empathy.
3. Building Safe, Inclusive Tech Builds Reputation
At Pinterest, AI is being used to make the platform more inclusive, intentionally.
“We have body type, skin tone, and hair pattern filters… and they’ve really changed the way people use Pinterest,” said Caroline Nolan, VP of Communications at Pinterest.
“Users who do use them are 66% more engaged than users who don’t,” said Noland.
The message: thoughtful AI design can directly support brand values—and deepen user connection.
4. Regulation Can Be a Differentiator, Not a Threat
Proactively engaging with policy builds credibility both internally and externally.
“Our business model is premised on being safe,” said Nolan. “Sometimes you have to sacrifice engagement for that.”
From policy restrictions on nudity and political ads to privacy-first design for younger users, Pinterest is proactively shaping its regulatory narrative:
“As we head toward AI regulation, we hope (at least in California) we are really pushing for that.”
5. Bringing Society Along Is the Job
Held noted that speed itself is a risk.
“This stuff… is moving very fast. And how are we bringing people along for the ride?”
Whether it’s through teacher training, consumer education, or accessible product comms, the panel agreed that helping people understand how to use AI—ethically and effectively—is now core to the comms function.
In Closing:
From safety and clarity to empathy and inclusion, reputation now lives at the edge of innovation. As Eric Porterfield of Roblox put it:
“There’s never been a better time to be a comms person than right now.”
We couldn’t agree more.
To learn more about how Highwire is approaching the new age of AI, check out our AI Index, AI Maturity Model and Corporate Reputation offerings.
.png)
.png)