AI can fake almost anything—except this 🔍

This train’s pulling into the station, folks. 🚉

Today, we conclude my Future of Networking forecast, the 10 trends set to shape how we’ll build and grow professional relationships in an AI world.

We started with three Foundational Shifts:

🔗 Trend 1: AI-Enhanced Networking
🔗 Trend 2: Agents, Avatars, and Automation
🔗 Trend 3: Professional Networks as a Measurable Asset

Moved into three Behavioral and Cultural Shifts:

🔗 Trend 4: Remote by Default, In-Person by Design
🔗 Trend 5: Privacy is a Power Move
🔗 Trend 6: The Rise of Micro-communities

And finally, focused on what I call Human-Centric Shifts:

🔗 Trend 7: Connection Architecture is a New and Niche Skill
🔗 Trend 8: Humanness is a Premium
🔗 Trend 9: Curators Rise and Superconnectors Lead

Before we dive into Trend 10, I want to express my deep gratitude.
Whether you’ve been reading since the start or just recently joined in, thank you. Thank you for the feedback, for resharing this work, and for being part of a growing group of people advocating for a future that blends the best of humanity with the best of AI.

And with that…

🔮 My tenth prediction for the Future of Networking is that verification is the new influence.

I was listening to a TED podcast recently when an advertisement came on that said: “If you’re human and you know it, get your free World ID at world.org. It is a digital identity that anonymously proves you are a unique human online, creating a priority lane for humans in the age of AI.” 🤯

If that ad is any indication, we’re entering an era where proof—not presence—is what earns trust. Visibility alone doesn’t mean much anymore; everyone is online, and followers can be bought. What will truly set you apart is the ability to prove who you are, what you stand for, and why you’re credible. In a sea of AI-generated noise, verification will become the new social currency.

Anyone can now create content, clone voices, generate images, or automate conversations. This makes it harder than ever to know who and what to trust online.

Social media is already drowning in AI-generated videos — and major platforms are failing to flag the fake content. Think dating is a sacred space where people still respect and prioritize getting to know each other as humans? Think again. Conversations on dating apps are now being automated by AI.

Need I go on? People are already noticing the proliferation of AI content on social platforms — and the degradation of their experience on the platforms as a result.

But it’s not all doom and gloom over here! 🙅‍♀️ I’m not the only one who believes the future is human.

Entrepreneur and investor Andrew Yeung forecasts that “proof of humanity will be required to post, engage, and participate” on the next massive social platform.

And there are (still) news organizations that pride themselves on having factual articles written by humans.

My favorite, 1440, has a footer that explains their name: “In 1440, the printing press sparked a knowledge revolution. We carry that spirit forward, cutting through the noise and algorithm-driven feeds, to bring fact-driven knowledge to everyone.”

A year ago in the midst of the AI boom we may have thought a company that prides themselves on human writers are being inefficient…now that’s quickly turning into a competitive advantage.

Tools like BrightID or LinkedIn’s verification badge are just the beginning of tools and signals that will grow in popularity because they help us identify who’s real or not. 🔍

Emphasis on “the beginning,” though. 😅 In truth, we’re way behind on having tools and social platforms that will help us uncover what’s real vs. fake. In the meantime, we’re going to have to lean into our gut instinct + logic + asking outright “is this real?”

Until we have the tools to sniff out who and what is fake, it’s time for you to start embracing your face, voice, credible actions, and perhaps even offering an explicit exclaimer that you are real. (seriously!🙋🏻‍♀️)

Instead of relying entirely on AI to generate a video of yourself, for example, opt to use an AI video tool like Descript that aids you in quickly editing your own videos. As long as you’re starting with a real video of you and don’t add too many crazy enhancements, it’s still you.

Again, I’m not against AI tools for creativity or optimization. Just keep in mind if your objective is to be seem as a unique expertise, it’s YOU that will be the most effective.

I am proud to say that it’s actually me, Nicole, who writes this newsletter (and then, yes, my marketing manager produces it). Not ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Claude. I do the same with every single LinkedIn post: I write it — but, I do have AI check it and offer ideas for improvement. Ultimately, I am still the human looped into every single thing put out into the world with my name on it. Yes, I use AI for optimization and efficiency. But when my face or name or written word is showing up online, it’s still really me.

On that note, navigating this era is not just about trusting each other, but even double-checking ourselves…

Check out this post from Cassie Kozyrkov, Google's first Chief Decision Scientist.👇

Here are four quick tips for sussing the real from the fake (yourself included!):

• Learn how to spot fakes. Stay up to date on current guides, like this one for how to spot a fake video. This will be a continuous learning process, because as new AI tools come out, you’ll have to apply new tactics to spotting fakes.

• Curate, don’t just create. Filter what’s happening through the lens of your unique expertise. The internet has been flooded with content to date. Now, it’s those who are true experts cutting through the noise that will stand out. 

• Be known for something. Make it easy for people (and AI) to associate your name with a specific area of expertise.

• Lean into verification: From publishing real videos of you (not an AI-generated video of you), to proactively paying for badges and certifications: the more you can show you are legit and not someone just posing as an expert, the better.

Incentives are changing.

In a recent TIME article, Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince argues that the old, search-engine-driven internet incentivized clickbait and traffic-chasing, and that AI is ushering in a new era.

He envisions a future where humans are rewarded for furthering human knowledge, not gaming algorithms—shifting incentives from volume to value.

What a dream! No more incentives for clickbait and garbage content, nor influencers pretending to be experts? I’m here for the world where fact, experience, credibility, and delivering value is the name of the game.

I hope this series empowered you to move more confidently and eagerly into the era of AI, and to move into it with a little more optimism.

I’ll be taking a short break from publishing to focus on the announcement of our Networking OS—a proven system that accelerates relationship-driven opportunities in-person and with AI. I’m so excited to share it with you all soon.

With gratitude,
Nicole

“But wait, there’s more!” 👇

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