How AI Is Rewiring Winemaking and Wine Collecting - Shirley M. Mueller M.D. (www.psychologytoday.com)

A recent study explores the transformative role of AI in the winemaking industry, emphasizing how technology can enhance, rather than replace, human expertise. Conducted among 31 Italian wine professionals, the research reveals that approximately 29% are already employing AI for tasks like grape monitoring and logistics, with expectations that these applications will expand significantly within five years. Wine experts are particularly enthusiastic about AI's potential to address environmental challenges through smart materials and management systems, demonstrating a preference for tools that ensure sustainability over those that replicate human creativity in tasting and aging decisions. The study highlights six AI applications in winemaking, with environmental management systems scoring the highest approval among respondents. This reflects a broader trend within the AI/ML community, where human cognitive preferences favor technology that serves practical, measurable objectives. While AI can effectively optimize the production process and minimize waste, professionals remain skeptical about AI as a creative partner, whose interventions in sensory domains are perceived as threats to the human experience of wine. Ultimately, the findings suggest that in sectors steeped in tradition like winemaking, success will come from AI that respects and supports human emotional connections and expertise.