The Future with Hannah Fry · Series 1 · Episode 2
The Future with Hannah Fry, OK Computer, How Do I Feel? What the evidence says about emotion-reading AI
What the episode covers, where emotion-reading AI stands on the 311 Starburst and what leaders should take from it.
What it covers
About the episode
The episode asks whether artificial intelligence can read human emotions better than people can, and what happens when machines are built to recognise how we feel.
- Broadcaster
- Bloomberg Originals; BBC Two and BBC iPlayer (UK, 2026)
- Made by
- Bloomberg Media with Windfall Films
- Distributed by
- TVF International
- Episode
- Series 1, episode 2
Official episode page (Bloomberg Originals; BBC Two and BBC iPlayer (UK, 2026)) · More about the series
What the evidence says
Where emotion-reading AI stands in 2026
The 311 Starburst maps when each emerging technology and trend is expected to reach wide use. These are the entries that match this subject, with their status today.
- Technology · User InterfacesEmotion Tracking
Emotion tracking uses sensors that watch things like your face, voice and heartbeat to guess how you feel, inside and out. The guesses are not always right.
- Expected wide use
- 2027
- Status in 2026
- Act now
- Readiness
- TRL 8 of 9
- Technology · User InterfacesAffective Computing
Affective computing is about computers that notice human feelings. They try to understand them, and even copy them. A face or a voice can give clues.
- Expected wide use
- 2033
- Status in 2026
- Explore
- Readiness
- TRL 7 of 9
- Trend · SocietalAI Companion Reliance
- Expected wide use
- 2028
- Status in 2026
- Prepare
- Trend · SocietalAlgorithmic Society
- Expected wide use
- 2024
- Status in 2026
- Act now
Source: the 311 Starburst, researched by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit (data built 2026-10-28). Status rings: Act now means wide use by 2027, Prepare 2028 to 2030, Explore 2031 to 2035, Watch 2036 or later. Explore the Starburst Centre.
311 analysis
What leaders should take from it
- Check where emotion tracking is already used on your customers or staff, and whether the people affected know.
- Expect regulators to treat emotion recognition as high risk; build consent and opt-outs in from the start.
- Use the technology to support people, not to judge them: hiring, pay and performance decisions based on inferred emotions carry the most risk.
Analysis by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit.
Next steps
Take this subject to your leadership team
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Answers
Common questions
Can AI read emotions?
Systems can infer likely emotions from faces, voices and text, but accuracy varies by person and context. The 311 Starburst places emotion tracking in its Act now ring and the wider field of affective computing in Explore.
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