Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke told employees in a leaked memo that they’ll have to show jobs can’t be performed by AI before asking for more headcount and resources, and that there's a “fundamental expectation” that employees are using AI in their day-to-day work. The memo was initially leaked and then published in its entirety on X and LinkedIn by Tobi and Harley Finkelstein to demonstrate that they stand by Tobi's words and have nothing to hide in regards to the intentions of the memo.
Key points of the memo include:
- Using AI effectively is now a fundamental expectation of everyone at Shopify. It's no longer feasible to opt out of learning the skill of applying AI in their craft.
- AI must be part of every employee's GSD Prototype phase, as AI dramatically accelerates this process.
- Shopify will add AI usage questions to their performance and peer review questionnaire. Learning to prompt and load context is an important skill, and getting feedback on it will be valuable.
- Employees will be in charge of learning AI skills on their own, but the company will spearhead initiatives to help folks share what they learn with the rest of the class.
- Teams must demonstrate why they cannot get what they want done using AI before asking for more headcount and resources — a question which Tobi says can “lead to really fun discussions and projects.”
- The new rules apply to everyone, including Tobi himself and the rest of the executive team.
He ended the memo by saying:
“Our job is to figure out what entrepreneurship looks like in a world where AI is universally available. And I intend for us to do the best possible job of that, and to do that I need everyone’s help. I already laid out a lot of the AI projects in the themes this year- our roadmap is clear, and our product will better match our mission. What we need to succeed is our collective sum total skill and ambition at applying our craft, multiplied by AI, for the benefit of our merchants.”
Last week Fiverr's CEO Micha Kaufman also issued his own urgent call for employees to embrace AI or risk falling behind. Kaufman wrote:
“You must understand that what was once considered ‘easy tasks' will no longer exist; what was considered ‘hard tasks' will be the new easy, and what was considered ‘impossible tasks' will be the new hard. If you do not become an exceptional talent at what you do, a master, you will face the need for a career change in a matter of months. I am not trying to scare you. I am not talking about your job at Fiverr. I am talking about your ability to stay in your profession in the industry.”