AI advocates have long argued that the technology will drive major productivity gains, rewarding workers who use it effectively while replacing those who do not.
Zeb Evans, CEO of collaboration software startup ClickUp, says that shift is already happening. Last Thursday, Evans announced on X that ClickUp had laid off 22% of its workforce. He described the move not as cost-cutting, but as part of the company’s aggressive AI strategy to accelerate growth.
“Most savings from this change will flow directly back into the people who stay. We’ll be introducing million-dollar salary bands. If you create outsized impact using AI, you’ll be paid outside of traditional bands,” Evans wrote.
According to a recent Fortune report, ClickUp deployed about 3,000 internal AI agents to handle complex tasks across the company. Employees now focus on managing these agents and reviewing their output to ensure quality standards.
Evans said the company aims to transform ClickUp into a “100x org” powered by AI-driven productivity.
ClickUp is not alone in pursuing AI automation. A recent Gartner survey found that nearly 80% of companies using autonomous technology have reduced headcount. However, the report also found that many of these workforce cuts have not produced significant financial returns.
While some critics argue that companies use unproven AI tools to justify layoffs, ClickUp insists its strategy is delivering measurable results.
Evans told TechCrunch that the company is already tracking productivity gains from its AI agents internally. ClickUp also plans to introduce those capabilities into future products for customers.
“Instead of gamifying token cost, we gamify value created and time saved,” Evans wrote.
In recent months, more companies have started monitoring employee AI token usage to measure adoption of AI tools. Critics, however, argue that “tokenmaxxing” encourages higher AI spending without proving real productivity gains.
“The people that automate their jobs with AI will always have a job,” Evans claimed. But as AI handles more work, companies like ClickUp may eventually require fewer employees, especially those who fail to adapt.
Tech leaders have predicted this shift for years.
One example is Polsia, a one-year-old startup that claims to manage software operations for solopreneurs using AI automation. Founder and CEO Ben Broca runs the company alone. The startup recently raised $30 million at a $250 million valuation.
