Empathy (2025), by Bryan Walpert

Key Takeaways

• Empathy sold as perfume and game in 2024 setting
• Profit motives clash with idealistic desire for connection
• Narrative warns of empathy exploited for manipulation
• Highlights ethical dilemmas for tech and marketing sectors
• Longlisted for Ockham NZ Book Awards, gaining literary attention

Pulse Analysis

*Empathy* arrives at a moment when tech firms are racing to embed emotional intelligence into products, from AI‑driven chatbots to affective‑gaming platforms. Walpert’s narrative dramatizes this trend by imagining a fragrance and a video game that can chemically or interactively induce empathy. By framing the venture as both a marketing coup and a startup gamble, the novel mirrors real‑world hype around ‘empathy‑tech’ and the rush to monetize human sentiment for brand loyalty and user engagement.

The book’s core tension—idealism versus profit—echoes current debates in the tech industry about responsible innovation. Companies developing mood‑tracking wearables, neuro‑feedback apps, or gamified wellness solutions face similar questions: does amplifying empathy enhance societal well‑being, or does it create new avenues for manipulation and data exploitation? Walpert’s characters illustrate how a well‑intentioned product can be weaponised when corporate incentives outweigh ethical safeguards, offering a cautionary lens for marketers, product managers, and AI ethicists.

Beyond its commercial relevance, *Empathy* has earned literary recognition, landing on the Ockham NZ Book Awards longlist and drawing praise for its blend of contemplative prose and thriller intensity. The novel’s reception underscores a growing appetite for fiction that interrogates technology’s moral frontier. For industry leaders, the story serves as both a cultural touchstone and a strategic reminder: embedding empathy into products demands rigorous governance, transparent design, and a commitment to prevent the very exploitation the book dramatizes.