🖼 🤖 Amazon Programmers: AI Speeds up the Work Rhythm, Similar to Assembly Line Workers

🤖 Amazon Programmers: AI Speeds Up Work Rhythm, Similar to Assembly Line Workers

Programmers at technology companies like Amazon are facing a shift in the nature of their work, becoming more like warehouse workers.

* Efficiency Improvement and Pressure: Microsoft research shows that the AI programming assistant Copilot has increased programmers' output by more than 25%. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy emphasizes the huge returns of AI in improving productivity and reducing costs, and encourages employees to accelerate their work rhythm.
* Work Pattern Transformation: Amazon engineers say the company has raised output targets, become more strict about deadlines, and encouraged the development of new AI productivity tools. One engineer said the team size has been reduced by nearly half, but with the help of AI, they need to complete roughly the same amount of work.
* Negative Impacts: Engineers worry that over-reliance on AI will reduce thinking time and make the work routine. One engineer said that website features that used to take weeks to complete now have to be finished in a few days.
* Company Response: Amazon says it regularly reviews team staffing and will add more people if necessary, and believes that AI is a tool to enhance rather than replace engineers' expertise.
* Industry Trends: Shopify's CEO announced that "AI use is a basic requirement", and Google will also hold a hackathon to encourage employees to create AI tools to improve productivity. Google revealed that more than 30% of the company's code is suggested by AI and accepted by developers.
* Potential Risks: Experts point out that for inexperienced programmers, the introduction of AI may have a similar result to the shift from manual work to factory work in the 19th and 20th centuries, increasing the work intensity.
* Employee Reactions: Amazon employees told the Climate Justice organization that they are increasingly worried about the impact of using AI on work quality and their careers.

(NYT > Business)

via Teahouse - Telegram Channel