Will AI Replace Consultants? Asking for a Friend (Who’s a Consultant) By Ashrin Haque

 

The Existential Crisis Begins

Consultants everywhere are nervously sipping overpriced lattes, wondering if their next competitor will be a robot that doesn’t need sleep, snacks, or a LinkedIn profile. The rise of AI has sparked a question that’s both terrifying and hilarious:

Will AI replace consultants?

Let’s investigate—with humor, sarcasm, and a healthy dose of denial.

What Do Consultants Actually Do?

• Ask questions you already know the answers to.
• Create PowerPoints with more transitions than a Marvel movie.
• Say “synergy” with a straight face.
• Leave before the real work starts.

Now imagine an AI doing all that—but faster, cheaper, and without pretending to care about your weekend plans.

Consultant vs. AI: A Dramatic Dialogue

Consultant: I bring years of experience and intuition.
AI: I bring 10,000 case studies and zero bias.
Consultant: I can read the room.
AI: I am the room. I’ve already analyzed everyone’s facial expressions.
Consultant: Can you handle passive-aggressive emails?
AI: I reply instantly with perfect grammar and zero emotional damage.
Consultant: Okay, that’s terrifying.

What AI Can’t Do (Yet)

• Pretend to understand vague client goals.
• Survive a 3-hour meeting that could’ve been an email.
• Bill you for “strategic thinking” while actually Googling stuff.

So consultants still have a chance—especially if they master the art of looking thoughtful while saying, “Let’s circle back.”

Should Consultants Be Worried?

Yes.
But also no.
AI is here to help, not replace. Unless your entire job is copy-pasting from last year’s report—then yes, worry.

For the rest, embrace AI as your new intern. One that doesn’t steal your lunch from the office fridge.