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What if workplace training wasn't passive, boring, or easily ignored—but instead felt like an unforgettable lived experience? In this conversation, Erik sits down with Cortney Harding, a pioneer at the intersection of VR, AR, and AI in corporate training, to explore how immersive technologies are redefining how humans learn, lead, and empathize at work.

From empathy-driven virtual experiences to AI-powered avatars that practice with you 24/7, Cortney shares why most corporate training is broken—and how the future is already here (if we’re brave enough to use it).

👤 About the Guest

Cortney Harding is the founder of a consultancy at the cutting edge of immersive technology. She builds AI- and VR-powered training programs designed to teach the human skills that matter most—like empathy, communication, and inclusion—at scale. With experience across industries from child welfare to Fortune 100 corporations, she’s helping leaders fail safely, learn deeply, and lead better.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• The massive delta between traditional training (click-through videos) and immersive learning (VR/AI avatars)
• What it feels like to be excluded in a workplace—via headset
• Why “failing safely” in VR might be the most overlooked growth lever in corporate America
• What’s holding back mass adoption of VR/AI in learning (it’s not what you think)
• How frontline employees can (and should) start creating their own VR training content
• The emotional resistance to new technology—and how to lead people through it
• When AI meets empathy, what’s possible?

💡 Key Takeaways

• Immersive tech delivers exponential gains, not marginal ones—think 1/3 drop in turnover, 75% drop in training costs
• The future of learning is experiential, contextual, and emotional
• VR + AI allows people to practice at scale—without social risk or reputational cost
• Emotional resistance, not tech limitations, is the biggest blocker to innovation
• The competitive advantage of the future? Empathy at scale

❓ Questions That Mattered

• What are we actually trying to train for—and why have traditional methods failed?
• How does technology change when you start with the story, not the specs?
• What keeps companies from adopting innovations with wildly better outcomes?
• Why are “off-the-shelf” trainings insufficient for transformational growth?
• Who should be building the next generation of learning tools?

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Failing safely is one huge benefit. But what’s really powerful is that you’re locked in—there are no distractions. You feel it.” – Cortney

“Most corporate training is designed for teaching, not training. Knowledge doesn't create capability.” – Erik

“Turnover dropped by a third. With no changes to pay or policy. Just VR.” – Cortney Harding

“VR allows people to fail without consequence. And in that failure, they learn faster, deeper, and more honestly.” – Erik

“We don’t need more content. We need more authentic content created by the people who actually do the work.” – Cortney

🔗 Links & Resources

• Cortney Harding’s Website: https://cortney-harding.com/
• Cortney's Book 'The Spatial Race'. Pre-Order it on Amazon now!, Out October 7th.
• Follow Cortney on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cortneyharding/