ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND REGULATED PROFESSIONS

23 July 2026

Artificial intelligence is one of the main drivers of the economic, social, and cultural transformation of our time. Beyond its application across numerous technological and industrial sectors, AI is increasingly being integrated into the world of professional services, reshaping organizational models, the skills required, and the ways in which value is created. In this context, we are experiencing—perhaps still without fully realizing it—a profound phase of evolution in which law, technology, and emerging societal needs are becoming ever more structurally intertwined.

At present, this transformation is largely perceived in positive terms, with little reflection on the potential negative consequences that may arise. One notable exception is the encyclical Magnifica Humanitas by Pope Leo XIV, which warned of the potentially harmful effects of artificial intelligence. Christopher Olah, co-founder of Anthropic, speaking alongside the Pope in the Synod Hall, likewise observed that "there is a real possibility that AI will replace human labor on a very large scale," while questioning whether it will be possible to "ensure that the gains from AI are shared globally."

In the professional sphere, for example, the decline in membership already affecting several regulated professions—such as architects and lawyers—could be further accelerated by the widespread adoption of AI. This trend may undermine the long-term stability of professional pension funds and their related social security systems. Moreover, the proliferation of software companies (often headquartered abroad), algorithms, and AI-powered bots accessible to anyone may not only mislead non-professional users but also reduce the income generated by intellectual professions, thereby decreasing the tax revenues collected by both national and local governments.

The relationship between regulated professions and emerging technologies extends well beyond the boundaries of individual occupations. Artificial intelligence raises fundamental questions concerning liability, transparency, the protection of fundamental rights, personal data protection, intellectual property, and the governance of algorithms. In this changing landscape, universities, professional associations, and educational institutions should rethink effective educational and regulatory models, drawing on proposals already advanced in several common law jurisdictions. At present, however, these issues appear to receive little institutional attention or public debate, overshadowed by the advantages AI offers in other sectors. As a result, there is a significant risk that legislative responses will prove either delayed or incomplete, as has already been observed with the European AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689).

The transformation also affects areas where the impact of artificial intelligence may appear less obvious. In tourism, for instance, the growing digitalization of interactions, data management, digital platforms, and algorithms not only contributes to overcrowding in popular destinations but also increasingly standardizes travel experiences, diminishing both their cultural richness and sensory depth. By privileging what can be measured according to metrics designed to maximize average user satisfaction—such as reviews, visiting times, visitor density, and popularity—AI no longer presents destinations in their full historical and cultural complexity. Instead, it offers filtered, simplified, and carefully curated versions based on predictable preferences, often derived from users with very different cultural backgrounds. Cities, landscapes, and travel itineraries are progressively transformed into optimized sequences of "recommended experiences," where any deviation from the main route is discouraged or rendered virtually invisible.

Yet culture—particularly in Italy—also thrives on what cannot be optimized: detours, slowness, marginal places, small towns, and non-linear journeys. Historically, travel has also meant friction, disorientation, mistakes, chance encounters, and the unexpected. Algorithmic mediation, by contrast, seeks to eliminate precisely these elements, replacing them with a smooth and predictable continuity. However, it is precisely through discontinuity that much of an authentic cultural experience emerges: an unplanned side street, an unreviewed destination, or the idle time between two locations.

As this process unfolds, the sensory dimension of travel also becomes impoverished. When everything is anticipated, categorized, and recommended according to statistical patterns, travelers cease to discover and instead merely consume pre-designed itineraries. The smell of an unmapped alleyway, the unfiltered sounds of a non-touristic square, and the slow pace of an unoptimized place are gradually removed from the experience because they do not fit predictive models.

The greatest risk, therefore, is not simply the touristification of places but their perceptual abstraction. Physical places continue to exist, yet they are increasingly experienced through a digital superstructure that reduces their complexity. In this sense, artificial intelligence changes not only the way we travel but also the way we perceive the world while traveling. Those who generate the most "noise"—above all on social media—receive greater visibility from algorithms. And when perception itself is simplified, the culture that should emerge from it is inevitably diminished as well.

Avvocato Daniele Ferretti, Attorney-at-Law (New York)

The information contained in this article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute, and is not intended to constitute, legal advice or any other form of professional advice. The content does not take into account the specific circumstances of any individual case and should not be relied upon as a basis for making decisions without obtaining appropriate professional advice.