Company fires people who refuse to use AI

Coinbase CEO fires non-AI staff. Photo: Los Angeles Times.

In an episode of the Cheeky Pint podcast aired on August 21, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong revealed that he personally asked engineers at the cryptocurrency exchange to use AI to help with programming. Armstrong said that he not only encouraged it, but also attached clear consequences to those who hesitated.

According to him, initially, internally it was estimated that it would take 1-2 quarters to reach 50% AI tool adoption. However, Armstrong wanted all programmers in the company to start applying AI to their work immediately.

The CEO said he posted a message on the company’s Slack channel, emphasizing the importance of artificial intelligence in improving performance. Armstrong asked engineers to get familiar with the AI tool within a week, rather than waiting for a longer-term plan.

“If not, I will have a meeting on August 16 with all those who have not done so and I want to meet with them to understand why,” Armstrong said.

When the meeting took place, a handful of employees attended. Armstrong admitted that some had legitimate reasons, such as having just finished a business trip. However, those who did not have a convincing explanation were fired.

This “heavy-handed” approach, Armstrong says, is intended to send a clear message that AI is a must-have skill. Coinbase now runs a monthly “AI speedrun” training session led by an employee who is proficient in the tool. Armstrong’s goal is to have half of the company’s code written with AI by the end of the quarter.

The situation at Coinbase reflects the pressure at many large tech companies, where leaders are demanding that employees use AI to maintain a competitive edge. At Google, CEO Sundar Pichai once insisted in a company-wide meeting that engineers use AI to code and improve performance.

A Gallup survey in June found that senior executives use AI more often than lower-level employees. Specifically, 33% of those in executive positions said they use AI a few times a week or more, nearly double the rate of employees in the company.

Coinbase CEO also asserted that using AI does not mean handing over all the work to machines. “You can probably go further with it. You don’t want people to let AI code the transaction processing system. There needs to be manual checks and human involvement,” he said.

Source: https://znews.vn/cong-ty-duoi-nguoi-khong-chiu-dung-ai-post1579159.html