I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s been regularly inundated with headlines and media covering Artificial Intelligence. It’s been nonstop. There’s plenty of doom and gloom, but also an incredible sense of optimism about how artificial intelligence can change the world for the better. AI already has a ton of interesting applications in yoga, transforming elements of the physical practice, philosophy, sequencing and education with tools like LLM, wearables and motion tracking tech.

A lot of the discussion surrounding AI centers on the way it’ll transform the job market: Are yoga teachers among the long list of professions at risk of an AI take-over? Or is AI going to supercharge the space and enable yoga instructors to do more than they ever thought imaginable?

We’re embarking into unfamiliar territory. Some of it is overwhelming. Some of it is underwhelming. So where does that leave us? How is AI changing the landscape of yoga, and what does the future look like for yoga instructors, practitioners or the average Joe casually taking class with his girlfriend? I’ve been thinking about this quite a lot recently and thought it would be prudent to organize my thoughts. The definition of AI has broadened to include things like chatbots, big data analysis and other technologies that aren’t traditional ‘AI’ but still put us on an interesting path.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere—headlines, apps, innovations. But beyond the hype lies real potential: AI-powered yoga. From personalized sequences and posture alignment to physiological tracking and even spiritual guidance, technology is pushing yoga’s evolution in surprising ways.

Let’s take a look at the many different ways people are using AI today within the sphere of yoga and what the future might look like in this new world. Buckle up!

AI-Generated Yoga Classes & Smart Sequencing

Factory-Built Yoga Classes?

A couple years ago, I sat down with a pre-blonde Patrick Franco and we started playing around with AI to see how well it did at sequencing a class. It was only a couple months after ChatGPT was publicly released so we were still learning, but even back then with limited instruction in our prompt it was able to do okay. Sequencing is definitely one way yoga teachers use AI for inspiration or as an outright cheat sheet for building their classes. Digital yoga apps have taken it a step further to have AI design entire classes based on a user’s preferences.

Benefit: Mass Customization

Having an AI generated yoga class has a ton of advantages. Imagine someone opening an app and saying “Okay, I’m a beginner and I want to work on my hips but I have an ankle injury and only 17 minutes. I want the class to take place in that beach I got married on in Bali, and I’d also like my instructor to speak with an Australian accent.”

There’s simply no way to design a class for every single scenario like this without AI. Furthermore, apps like this have been around for years. Down Dog is a mobile app built entirely around custom yoga classes and it’s wildly popular. Down Dog doesn’t generate any AI video content from what I’ve seen though. That would be incredibly expensive right now. Instead, it looks more like pre-filmed poses/transitions stitched together based on your preferences for the class and then overlays an audio track with some instructions to get in and out of the pose.

The idea of being able to design an entire class in virtual reality or even to watch on TV is pretty enticing, and also pretty cool.

Limitations: Lacks Human Touch

Even strictly looking at online classes, there’s some differences that stick out between a class lead by a human vs artificial intelligence. Down Dog might be popular, but for me it lacks the personality that I cherish so much from real people. Dharma talks at the beginning of class are an opportunity for an instructor to tie real world experiences into deep insight from yoga’s principles and philosophy. I just don’t see that resonating if it’s coming from AI since it lacks the human experience.

LLMs like ChatGPT can handle sequencing pretty well but sometimes plans change in the midst of class. Experienced yoga teachers are able to adjust their sequence on the fly to accommodate injuries, or experience level within a class. Understanding the principles behind sequencing can enable instructors to work better on the fly in these situations.

What do we Predict for the Future of AI & Yoga?

AI video generation is very costly right now, but as costs come down its definitely feasible to see a world where AI could create an entire video or VR experience based on your preferences. You could design and take classes based on whatever outcome you can imagine. You could practice in otherworldly settings beside purple oceans and pink clouds. It could go beyond a recorded video or transcribed voice into an AI instructor that gives you real-time feedback based on your movement. In fact, some of this already exists… Let’s look at how AI is already helping to give real-time feedback on alignment.

Alignment & Posture Feedback via AI Vision Tech

The Robots Are Giving Adjustments Now  

Last year I got into a pretty interesting conversation about AI down in Los Angeles. I was in town for IDEA world’s fitness conference when someone came up to me excited to talk about the YogaRenew app. He had developed technology that uses real-time video analysis to provide feedback on alignment. His pitch went something like this: “Nick, you can stream classes from your app and have AI give your students real time feedback on their alignment. The way it would work is they just flip open the YogaRenew app, their camera starts rolling and BOOM – AI can give them guidance on how they can “fix” their alignment.” Well that’s interesting.

Virtual reality glasses can summarize your workout/yoga class based on stored data and other manual input then provide feedback and suggestions

Benefits: Affordable Personalized Coaching

I’ve been seeing the concept of AI giving real-time feedback for alignment mentioned more frequently in different articles, like this one published in nih.gov last year. It’s definitely clear why it would be attractive. Having real-time feedback gets us one step closer to the experience of a real-life instructor. It’s more affordable than having a person come to your house for a private session and with an AI instructor you don’t need to worry about scheduling. Just crack open your app whenever you’re ready to practice and they’re there waiting for you.  On-demand digital yoga content introduced the practice to people with limited access to in-person classes. With AI, yoga can become even more accessible for underserved communities.

Challenges: Individual Anatomies Vary

The thing is – what does it really mean to ‘fix’ my alignment? For sure there are instances where this would be helpful but it could also be misleading if not handled properly. The challenge comes from the fact that there’s no universal form in alignment of the asanas. And for good reason. Anatomical variations between people mean that we’re all coming into a yoga class with different bone structure, joint flexibility, muscle length, etc. As Bernie Clark pointed out, “Imposing a stereotyped ‘ideal’ technique will often prevent an athlete from reaching their full potential.” I have yet to see any technology that really accommodates this principle. Yet.

What do we see for the future?

Just because we aren’t quite there now doesn’t mean we won’t get there some day. AI is capable of way more knowledge and input capacity than a human. When self-driving cars first hit the road, people were terrified of how they would endanger people – both the drivers and pedestrians. The reality is that a self-driving car is able to take in way more data points than a human can which gives them far greater potential for awareness and safety in the long run. I can imagine a world where an AI instructor is be able to communicate with a student and provide guidance like a human does today. In fact, an AI instructor would be able to work with a lot more data points than a human instructor ever could. Which brings me to my next subject: wearables & physiological data.

AI Can Design Your Yoga Practice Based On Your Physiological Data

Sequencing From Your Stats

Meditation with wearable tech: A ring that can monitor heart rate, sleep, etc.

Wearables are hot right now. Watches, rings and earrings are able to monitor physiological metrics like heart rate, respiratory patterns, and movement. There’s smart yoga mats on the market that claim to detect your balance, and Bluetooth enabled yoga pants that are designed to track your alignment. EEG devices designed to track brainwaves during meditation have been on the market for a while as well. I’ve personally become an advocate for continuous glucose monitors and wear an Oura ring.

We developed the YogaRenew app to integrate with Apple health so that workouts and mindful minutes could be tracked automatically. In short, there’s an abundance of data collection available which opens the door for a ton of AI applications when it comes to a physical yoga practice.

Why It Matters

Over time we learn to tune into our body. We gain insight on what serves us and what doesn’t. Wearables can aid us in this pursuit and AI can build guidance on top of that insight. The physical practice of yoga contains a diverse set of styles that can be deployed in different situations. The body craving a Vinyasa class might look quite different from the body in need of a Yin or Restorative class.

As an example, variations in heart rate can indicate stress levels. AI might sense that we’re stressed and design a class for us to alleviate that stress. Taking it one step further, AI might be able to adjust a class in real time based on your physiological data. If it senses that you’re getting exhausted mid-class, it might lower the intensity of your workout and adjust the rest of the class sequence to accommodate your needs. You may already be in touch with these signals from your body, but your instructor certainly isn’t. At least not your human instructor.

Issues to ‘Watch’ (No Pun Intended)

Wearable metrics deliver performance scores. This gamification of our health can be a great way to encourage engagement in healthier activities. But it can also become a trap if we become too attached to the outcome. Yoga is a path of liberation. Technology can aid us in that effort or it can become an obstacle.

The truth is that the data we get from consumer wearables today is imperfect. They can provide some amazing insight but it isn’t always accurate. For example, the Oura ring is only able to provide an estimate of core body temperature and can be influenced by external temperatures. Lastly – anybody concerned with privacy isn’t likely to start sharing their physiological data with nonchalance.

What Comes Next?

The future of AI in wearables and yoga lies in the benefits of big data, personalization and technological advancement. Over time, AI can identify patterns which can help it further optimize your practice. You might get personalized recommendations based on circadian rhythms, readiness scores or cycle syncing.

The future might also see the technology itself move into exciting new areas. Smart fabrics and smart clothing might become more common place. Skin patches or tattoos with tiny biometric sensors might take the place of the jewelry we’re using today. Devices to measure brainwave patterns and respiration may continue to develop and become better integrated with practices like pranayama or meditation.

Or the idea of a ‘wearable’ itself might change to the point where AI is infused directly into the brain and body thus starting the cyborg revolution. What a world to live in, right?

AI as a Spiritual Guide & Chatbot Guru

Downloading Samadhi ███▒▒▒▒▒▒▒

In his new book “Digital Dharma,” Deepak Chopra explores AI as a powerful tool for insight, research and self-reflection. The book has a lot of insight quoted directly from Gemini and ChatGPT and at times reads like a conversion between himself and AI. In the book, Chopra writes:

“In the Indian tradition, spiritual journeys historically required a guide who knew the way; in other words, a guru. AI can play many roles, from research assistant to personal confidant, but guru? The function of the guru needs to be overhauled in modern times, getting rid of the cult of personality, stepping away from superstitious belief in the magical attributes of enlightened beings, and answering the skepticism felt by modern people when spiritual issues are confronted. AI can step in to renovate a time-honored role almost immediately.”

Interesting take!

We’ve already seen a ton of scenarios where artificial intelligence can have an impact on yoga, but “AI” today is still most commonly used as a chatbot or image generator. This isn’t your granddaddy’s chatbot though.

Advantages

There’s a lot of truth in what Deepak Chopra says. A platform like ChatGPT is able to relay profound insight without the added baggage of being human. And lets be real – LLM platforms are incredibly powerful resources. They’re able to synthesize knowledge across the entirety of recorded history and distill it into personalized insight. They’re an incredible tool whether you’re looking for philosophical insight, spiritual guidance, or just want to get a quick answer related to anatomy.

LLMs like Chat GPT or Gemini are starting to replace traditional search engines in a lot of areas. For example, if I want a list of poses that help to build core strength I can get it pretty quickly on Chat GPT without having to scroll through a lengthy blog post.

Weaknesses

LLMs have been known to occasionally spit out total gibberish. An error that’s known as ‘hallucinating.’  They have their own imperfections separate from us humans. And while there’s value in having a device that can produce incredible insight, a machine won’t be able to speak from experience or lead by example. It lacks the capacity to connect empathetically or relate to human experiences like loss or grief.

Experiences like grief, loss, anxiety, or depression are often the driving force that draw people into a yoga practice. AI can provide incredible insight and direction within these areas but will always lack the power of human experience that can be such a valuable source of hope and inspiration.

Photo series of an adult man communicating with smart speaker in different situations. Shot in Berlin.

The Future of AI Gurus

The ability to decipher centuries of knowledge into poignant guidance is already here, but there’s still a lot of exciting places left for us to go.  As Deepak Chopra pointed out, having AI fulfill the role of guru can be a powerful way to separate the flaws of humanity from the flawless principles found in yogic texts. It lacks the human experience that comes from an individual sharing their journey but can definitely arm that individual with valuable insight.

The future of AI as a guru could see video generated avatars that are able to hold a conversation in real time with more personalization, faster models and better reliability. I could imagine a future where datapoints through-out our day are collected and we’re able to receive answers to questions we didn’t even think to ask.

Taking it a step further, many envision a future where we reach a technological singularity, uploading and embedding these insights directly into the brain rather than consuming them in an external stimulus. Could the future have us operating as cyborgs with a constant barrage of knowledge penetrating our behavior and outlook? I’m not likely to be an early adopter of that technology.

Will AI Replace Yoga Teachers?

Will your favorite yoga teacher be replaced by Yogi Alexa or Yoga Siri?

Yoga is a profession of passion and purpose. The embers that spark this passion likely won’t stop glowing if AI is able to fulfill a lot of the roles that yoga instructors once filled. In some ways, it can help to fan the flame.

There are a lot of ways that AI can serve as a better yoga instructor – especially when it comes to collecting and deciphering lots of different data points into guidance or structured feedback. Often though, students are drawn to the instructor themselves more than their instruction. It might be a personality of peace and tranquility that they see in somebody and want for themselves. They might be drawn to an instructor’s ability to overcome similar challenges they’re currently facing. Or they might simply like the way they look and want to take up a similar exercise routine.

AI lacks the ability to lead by example. It lacks the ability to share real-world experience and empathize. It lacks the capacity of physical touch. The yoga teachers that thrive in the age of AI will be the ones who impart this knowledge and experience. They’ll be the ones who are able to connect on a human level.

AI Is a Tool, Not a Replacement

AI-enhanced alignment, wearable tracking, chatbot teachers, and personalized sequencing offer exciting, scalable ways to practice yoga. But AI isn’t human. It can’t breathe compassion into Dharma. Instead, it empowers teachers and yogis—enabling deeper practice and wider access.

In the age of AI, flourishing yoga teachers will be those who combine emotional intelligence, lived wisdom, and a willingness to wield technology thoughtfully—co-creating the future of yoga, not competing with it.