You Don't Align an AI, You Align with It

Current AI alignment approaches exclude the affected workforce from design decisions, treating them as objects to be configured rather than partners in a collaborative process, which undermines the validity of alignment measurements and creates mutual mistrust. Technology leaders must recognize that AI integration is inherently a bidirectional relationship where both human and machine capabilities are reshaped, not a unidirectional installation of values into systems. This fundamental misalignment between the design philosophy and implementation reality poses greater organizational risk than either technical safety concerns or acceleration timelines.