Purpose: This study attempts to develop a practical understanding of the positive and negative employee experiences due to artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and the creation of technostress. It unravels the human resource development-related challenges with the onset of Industry 4.0.Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 32 professionals with average work experience of 7.6 years and working across nine industries, and the transcripts were analyzed using NVivo.Findings: The findings establish prominent adverse impacts of the adoption of AI, namely, information security, data privacy, drastic changes resulting from digital transformations and job risk and insecurity brewing in the employee psyche. This is followed by a hierarchy of factors comprising the positive impacts, namely, work-related flexibility and autonomy, creativity and innovation and overall enhancement in job performance. Further factors contributing to technostress (among employees): work overload, job insecurity and complexity were identified.Practical implications: The emerging knowledge economy and technological interventions are changing the existing job profiles, hence the need for different skillsets and technological competencies. The organizations thus need to deploy strategic manpower development measures involving up-gradation of skills and knowledge management. Inculcating requisite skills requires well-designed training programs using specialized tools and virtual reality (VR). In addition, employees need to be supported in their evolving socio-technical relationships, for managing both positive and negative outcomes.Originality/value: This research makes the unique contribution of establishing a qualitative hierarchy of prominent factors constituting unintended consequences, positive impacts and technostress creators (among employees) of AI deployment in organizational processes.

The Metaverse has the potential to form the next pervasive computing archetype that can transform many aspects of work and life at a societal level. Despite the many forecasted benefits from the metaverse, its negative outcomes have remained relatively unexplored with the majority of views grounded on logical thoughts derived from prior data points linked with similar technologies, somewhat lacking academic and expert perspective. This study responds to the dark side perspectives through informed and multifaceted narratives provided by invited leading academics and experts from diverse disciplinary backgrounds. The metaverse dark side perspectives covered include: technological and consumer vulnerability, privacy, and diminished reality, human–computer interface, identity theft, invasive advertising, misinformation, propaganda, phishing, financial crimes, terrorist activities, abuse, pornography, social inclusion, mental health, sexual harassment and metaverse-triggered unintended consequences. The paper concludes with a synthesis of common themes, formulating propositions, and presenting implications for practice and policy.