Navigating the Wilderness: AI’s Place in Global Employee Benefits

The following article is an excerpt from Alliant's Global Benefits team's 2026 Global Health Review, compiled in partnership with Asinta.

As HR and Benefits leaders continue to navigate the ever-changing landscape of employee expectations, compliance complexities, and global scalability, a new force has entered the wilderness: Artificial Intelligence.

While its potential is enormous, its presence has split the trail, and employers are starting to pitch their tents in one of two distinct camps.

Camp 1: The Trailblazers

“Let’s pack the gear, we’re going in!”

Over by the big, crackling campfire, you’ll find the innovators. These employers, many of whom are in tech or forward-leaning industries, have pitched their tents firmly in Camp 1. They’re roasting s’mores while swapping stories about the latest tools and asking questions like:

• How can AI support employee self-service and reduce time spent answering repetitive questions?
  
  
• Can we use AI to automate benchmarking across our U.S. and global plans?
  
  
• What tools are brokers/consultants and vendors building in-house that could improve efficiency?
  
  
• How can AI help with global compliance tracking, eligibility management, and reporting?

These employers are curious and eager to explore new opportunities. They see AI as a hiking partner, not a threat. For them, the potential benefits of leveraging AI in areas like benchmarking, routine benefits administration, or analyzing large data sets outweigh the uncertainties.

These campers are not just looking at vendor tools either; they want to know how their consultants are incorporating AI and what’s being developed behind the scenes and in future roadmaps. This camp sees AI not as a replacement for human judgment, but as a co-pilot. A means to reduce friction in the employee experience and support leaner HR teams. These leaders are not waiting for perfect solutions; they want to know what’s available now, what’s being tested, and how they can safely pilot emerging tools.

Camp 2: The Cautious Campers

“Let’s make sure the trail is safe before we move.”

A little further from the fire, nestled in a quieter corner, sits Camp 2. These campers are no less intelligent, but they are much more cautious. They’re listening, but they’re also watching the trees rustle a little too closely for comfort.

The key concerns emerging from this group are clear:

• Is sensitive employee information secure? Does our data feed into public models?
  
  
• How does the AI tool respond to complex, personal employee inquiries, and how accurate are those responses? How do we protect trust and transparency?
  
  
• With respect to global data regulations, how does AI align with GDPR, China’s PIPL, and other local requirements?
  
  
• Does AI fully understand or anticipate local regulation shifts, tax changes, or labor movements?

For Camp 2, the primary concern is data privacy. They want proof, not just reassurances that sensitive employee information won’t be swept into broader AI platforms. They want to know that no data is shared or trained on, and that the models are contained. These campers believe AI can’t replace empathy when it comes to wellness and mental health services. They are wary of the hype. Many want to avoid being early adopters of something that could mislead, misfire, or mismanage.

Bridging the Camps: What HR and Benefits Leaders Should Do Next

In reality, many organizations straddle both camps depending on geography, internal readiness, or specific use cases. As strategic leaders, your role is to assess where your organization is today. That may include:

• Engaging brokers and consultants to explain how they’re using AI, and what governance policies are in place.
  
  
• Piloting internal AI tools for FAQs, policy lookup, or plan comparison before rolling out employee-facing applications.
  
  
• Evaluating global vendors for their AI integration approach, privacy architecture, and regional and local compliance alignment.
  
  
• Developing AI literacy across your HR team to understand limitations, avoid overreliance, and provide human oversight where it matters most.

Final Thought: Light the Lanterns, But Respect the Shadows

AI is not yet a campfire that everyone wants to gather around. Artificial Intelligence may become an integral part of how benefits are designed, communicated, and delivered, across borders and across generations. However, just like any journey, some will explore first, and others will follow once the trail has been cleared.

Alliant is taking a conservative approach to AI as we view it as our responsibility to serve both camps. Alliant’s philosophy has always been rooted in independence and creativity. We help innovators chart new paths while also ensuring the “campfire” of governance, security, and trust remains strong. Alliant is actively evaluating and pursuing AI-driven solutions that align with our strategic goals of providing value to our clients.

To balance exploration with diligence, Alliant requires all new vendors complete a comprehensive AI and cybersecurity questionnaire, a practice we encourage our clients to adopt as part of their own diligence. Our goal with any technology is to maximize the benefits we provide to our clients while maintaining vigilant risk management protocols to protect data.

However, diligence is not only about vendors, but also about alignment. We recommend that Total Rewards and Benefits teams have intentional discussions about their collective comfort level with AI. These conversations set the tone for how far and how fast an organization is willing to go. Whether a company sees itself as a trailblazer or a cautious camper, we believe employers should begin weaving AI themes and soft guidelines into their global benefits philosophy. Doing so ensures readiness for innovation, without losing sight of the trust and security employees expect.

A few questions to get the campfire conversation started:

• How does said AI tool support our global Total Rewards philosophy and employee value proposition?
  
  
• What problem are we trying to solve with AI? Is it a tool for automation, insight, or decision making?
  
  
• Does the technology aim to reduce costs, or just shift cost to tech licenses?
  
  
• Many HRIS, brokers, and consultants already provide inventory and premium data; what is the business case to duplicate?
  
  
• Can AI help us make better decisions, or just faster ones? Are we solving for visibility, efficiency, governance, or cost management?

Whether your organization is ready to set out on the trail or prefers to wait until the path is clearer, what matters most is being informed and proactive.

• Ask the right questions. Push for transparency.
  
  
• Stay close to the fire but bring a flashlight.
  
  
• Stay human in how we use this powerful tool.

Grab your marshmallows (or your data compliance policy), and let’s make sure no one gets left behind in the woods!

Download the 2026 Global Health Review.