After Embracing AI, PwC Is Now Training 85,000 Workers To Challenge the Answers Its Tools Produce

PwC US announced on 9 November 2026 that more than 85,000 partners and employees in its US and Mexico offices and Acceleration Centers will undergo critical-thinking training designed to help them question artificial intelligence-generated conclusions. The certification programme is scheduled to begin in December, with completion targeted for June 2027.

The initiative comes as AI takes on more research and analysis tasks that previously helped employees develop professional judgement. PwC says its programme will give staff structured opportunities to assess information rather than rely unquestioningly on automated recommendations.

The firm estimates an investment of more than $100 million (£75,313,500) across the programme and related university support, according to Bloomberg Tax. The figure includes development costs and university funding, not the certification alone.

How PwC Plans to Teach Workers to Challenge AI

Yolanda Seals-Coffield, PwC US's chief people and inclusion officer, said the objective was to strengthen workers' ability to evaluate information, question assumptions and exercise sound judgement.

Participants will begin with diagnostic exercises designed to reveal their thinking preferences, strengths and areas for improvement. They will then study PwC's own framework through masterclasses, practical exercises and simulations adapted to their roles. Team activities and workplace tools are intended to reinforce the lessons.

PwC says it is validating the framework with input from professors affiliated with Wharton and Harvard.

Margaret Burke, PwC US's talent acquisition and development leader, described a possible exercise involving a tax professional reviewing an AI-generated analysis of a complicated tax position. Even if the recommendation appears convincing, the supporting information may be incomplete.

Before making a decision, the employee would need to verify sources, consider alternative interpretations and determine what additional evidence is required.

'It's an opportunity to practice the judgment involved in making a decision, rather than simply learning about critical thinking in theory,' Burke told Human Resources Director.

Burke also said PwC intends to introduce an AI coach, trained on its framework, to help employees practise during their work.

Why PwC Is Pairing AI With Human Judgement

The programme comes amid wider questions about cognitive offloading, the practice of using external tools to carry out mental tasks. Although technology can make work faster, researchers have examined whether reliance on AI is associated with differences in independent thinking.

A 2025 study by Michael Gerlich, published in the journal Societies, examined 666 participants and reported an association between frequent AI use, cognitive offloading and lower critical-thinking scores. The research relied partly on self-reported measures and did not establish that AI caused those differences.

Nita Farahany, a professor of law and philosophy at Duke University, discussed a related concern in an article published by the American Psychological Association in July 2026. She warned that generative AI enables people to delegate more complex mental activities than earlier technologies allowed.

Neither the study nor Farahany's comments establish that PwC employees have lost critical-thinking abilities. The training is a response to changes in how professional work is performed, not evidence of such a decline.

PwC also plans to make its framework available to universities in early 2027 and fund selected institutions to develop teaching materials. The initiative therefore extends beyond its employees to students preparing for increasingly AI-assisted careers.