Recently, startups have become accustomed to presenting AI not as a simple program, but as an “assistant”, “employee”, even a “colleague”. They are given human names like “Claude”, “Devin”, “Charlie”. The goal: to inspire trust in the user. Good, but this is quickly crossing its limits.
Who benefits and who loses from the concept of an “AI employee”?
For companies hesitant to hire new employees, the “AI employee” seems like an attractive solution. The advertising says: replace a person with AI, no mistakes, no breaks, no salary. But who thinks about ordinary workers?
Giving a human name to faceless code is dehumanization
“Claude remembers you, speaks to you in a friendly way, helps you,” they say. In fact, this is a simple machine model. This is marketing — and it’s dangerous. It reduces the value of human labor.
Unemployment is rising, and AI is replacing workers
In the US, 1.9 million people were on unemployment benefits in May – the highest figure since 2021. Most of them are workers in the technology sector. Against this background, AI continues to “replace” workers.
AI is an assistant, not a replacement
Technological progress is amazing. AI can expand human capabilities, help us work faster and smarter. But this is not in terms of “AI colleague”, “AI developer”. This is a tool, not a partner.
We need real tools, not fake employees
We need tools that help a reliable manager. We need technology that empowers people. And let’s use artificial intelligence simply as artificial intelligence.
