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Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski is making a significant investment in AI, to the point where he has implemented a hiring freeze. According to The Telegraph, Siemiatkowski stated, “There will be a shrinking of the company. We’re not currently hiring at all, apart from engineers.” In the past, Klarna had to lay off 10 percent of its workforce during an economic downturn in the tech industry. However, this time around, Klarna is not planning any layoffs but rather refraining from active recruitment, as AI is now capable of handling tasks that were previously done by humans.
Klarna isn’t the only company leveraging AI to replace jobs. The emergence of tools like ChatGPT has sparked concerns about job displacement and disruptive potential within industries. While it is still early days for generative AI, companies like IBM are already considering hiring freezes or eliminating roles that can be automated with AI. Siemiatkowski’s strategy to integrate AI into Klarna’s operations reflects a broader trend among businesses seeking technological efficiency.
Siemiatkowski emphasized that tasks that once required significant time can now be done more efficiently with AI, reducing the need for a large workforce. He emphasized the importance of observing how this technology evolves before making further recruitment decisions. Although specific roles impacted by AI were not mentioned, Siemiatkowski expressed his intention to incorporate more consumer-facing AI features to transform Klarna into a “personal finance assistant.”
Topics:
Artificial Intelligence
