Shopify, a Canadian e-commerce company, is changing its hiring method in line with the era of artificial intelligence (AI). Recently, Shopify founder and CEO Toby Lueckke made a surprise announcement that he would hire people only for tasks that AI cannot replace.
“Before we ask for more people and resources, we need to prove why we can’t use AI to carry out the tasks,” Lucke said in a note to his employees on Wednesday. “I wonder what this field would look like if AI assistants were part of the team. This question can lead to really interesting discussions and projects.”
He stressed that employees have basic expectations for using AI for their daily work and explained that the productivity of employees using AI has increased significantly. “Many employees used AI to approach tasks that they would not have dared to do before, and as a result, I witnessed a 100-fold improvement in work performance,” he said.
Shopify is a company that sells web-based software that helps online retailers manage and operate sales. CEO Lueckke added that AI utilization will be reflected in employee performance evaluation in the future.
The change is part of a trend that comes as tech companies invest huge amounts of money in AI development this year. Shopify has launched AI-based services for sellers, such as a chatbot called “Sidekick” and an automated tool called “Shopify Magic.” While tech companies are making large investments in AI, they are cutting costs for other sectors by stopping or restructuring their lossy projects.
About 152,000 jobs were lost at 549 companies last year, according to RayOFFs, which analyzes the restructuring status of the global tech industry. Shopify’s annual report showed that the total number of employees decreased from 8,300 a year ago to 8,100 at the end of last year. Shopify cut 14% of its total workforce in 2022 and 20% in 2023.
SAM KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
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