Tom Cruise climbed the Colosseum fence - what that teaches us about designing AI operated experiences for perspective
When Tom Cruise climbed the Colosseum fence at 3am, he wasn’t escaping a place — he was escaping the filter. AI operated experiences can do the same — if we design for perspective.
When people argue for human guides over digital or AI-operated ones, the usual claim is that only a human can create true connection.
But that’s not always what travellers actually need — or remember.
What makes a moment stick isn’t necessarily the guide’s personality — or how local they are. It’s the shift in how a place is perceived. That quiet click when something suddenly feels different. More real. More layered. More personal.
That’s perspective. And that’s what digital experiences can — and should — deliver.
The Colosseum, without the filter
In a 2001 UK TV interview, Nicole Kidman describes climbing over the fence into the Colosseum with Tom Cruise at 3am.
This wasn’t about thrill-seeking. She had already lived in Rome. She knew the place.
What she wanted was something she couldn’t easily access as a public figure: an unfiltered experience.
No one looking at her. No one explaining anything. No need to perform.
Just the space. The structure. The scale. And the quiet.
It was the same Colosseum — but the absence of a guide, of a crowd, of commentary, created a completely different perspective.
Stonehenge at dawn
I’ve been to Stonehenge many times. During the day, with signs, barriers, and other visitors. You follow the path, take the photos, read the panels. It’s familiar, structured, and largely passive.
But this year, I stayed overnight for the solstice.
At 1:30am, I touched the stones. They were still warm from the day. Covered in lichen. Textured. Physical.
The night had been alive with movement and ritual. Druids in robes performed ceremonies by torchlight, forming circles, chanting, holding space. Around them, others danced, played drums, or simply stood quietly in the dark. By morning, the Hare Krishna were singing gently near the edge of the crowd as the first light reached the horizon.
There was human connection, yes — but not the guided kind. No narration. No structure. Just a layered, collective presence that made the space feel alive and open to interpretation.
And then, the sun rose through the ancient arch.
No one explained what it meant. No one said what to feel.
But the moment landed differently. Not because of what I was told, but because of what I saw. What I sensed. What I understood without being directed.
The shift in perception didn’t come from a person.
It came from the conditions — human, natural, symbolic — that allowed perspective to emerge.
The moments at the Colosseum and Stonehenge weren’t powerful because of a person — they were powerful because of how the place was framed. That’s something digital can deliver too, if it’s designed for it.
What digital should focus on
Digital guides are often judged for what they can’t do: they don’t smile, they don’t improvise, they don’t connect on a human level.
But let’s focus on what they can do — and where they excel. They can offer structure. Consistency. Adaptability. And most importantly, they can be designed to deliver perspective — intentionally, flexibly, and at scale.
So how do we design AI travel for perspective — not just information? These three principles offer a way forward:
- Use multiple voices to show different truths
One narrator can only ever offer one view. Let users hear from a range of voices — each with their own tone, background, and agenda. The same place, reframed through different characters, becomes something new.
For example on the Autoura platform we have a Bath tour that includes Mary Shelley, Jane Austen, and Beau Nash. Each character offers a different lens on the same city, allowing visitors to connect with the stories that resonate most with them.
- Let users see through their own cultural frame
People interpret places through what they already know — where they’re from, what they’ve experienced, what they value. A visitor from the US might connect with a story through individualism or civil rights; a visitor from France might engage more through philosophy or revolution. The story is the same — but the framing shifts to meet them.
This isn’t just about relevance. It’s about helping them feel the story in a way that makes sense to them.
- Adapt based on what you know about them
If someone avoids dairy, loves art, or travels with children — use that information to subtly shift the framing. Not to hide or exclude stories, but to surface what matters most to them.
Final thought
AI-operated experiences may never match the emotional connection of a great human guide. But they don’t need to.
What they can offer is just as valuable:
A different lens. A changed angle. A way of seeing the familiar — or the iconic — as if for the first time.
That’s perspective. And for digital experiences, that’s not just a design goal — it’s the reason people will remember them.
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