Will the BIG Tech AI Bet Pay Off?
Meta reportedly tracked and used internal employee behavioral data to help train their AI systems...while simultaneously restructuring teams and laying off 8,000 workers.
(coincidence? this tech expert says "unlikely")
At what point does productivity monitoring become unpaid extraction of labor?
Tech is betting BIG on AI right now. Like, ALL IN.
Massive investment. Followed by massive pressure to deliver.
And right now those debts are being called in.
Translation:
Many companies are feeling pressure from shareholders to justify those AI investments — i.e. some kind of measurable return: higher productivity, leaner teams, reduced labor costs, faster output, or improved margins. (see: Dodge v. Ford, 1919, for why shareholder interests often take priority over employee wellbeing).
And they'll keep their feet firmly on the necks of executives until that bet pays off.
That pressure is absolutely shaping the layoffs, restructures, and aggressive cost-cutting we're seeing across tech.
And for those of us not sitting on a cushion (A Knight’s Tale, circa 2001 😏), that translates into layoffs for many — and mounting workloads for the people left behind.
The Big Bet
Organizations across tech made massive bets on AI — and now many executives are being pushed to demonstrate “efficiency,” cost savings, and productivity gains tied to those investments on aggressive timelines.
In practice, that often translates into:
layoffs
restructures
reduced hiring
heavier workloads for smaller teams
and a growing expectation that fewer people can produce more output with AI-assisted workflows
Whether those AI investments ultimately deliver the long-term returns companies are hoping for remains to be seen.
But in the short term, reducing labor costs has become one of the clearest ways organizations can signal to shareholders that those investments are “working.”
Humans > Robots
(yes I know AI isn't a robot, let me live)
Now, FTR — AI's a powerful tool. I use it and I think it's here to stay.
But it doesn't think independently....or originate lived experience...and it still relies HEAVILY on human-created ideas, input, and overall judgment.
And I can prove it...
Two Simple Examples:
1️⃣ If you challenge an AI response with stronger logic, reasoning, or just another perspective, it usually pivots immediately.
Why? Because it synthesizes patterns vs. independent reasoning or thought from lived experience in the world.
2️⃣ Companies like Meta reportedly relied on data generated by actual employees to improve AND train these systems in the first place (and they won't be the last...)
Humans aren't obsolete—We're ESSENTIAL.
We are, quite literally, the infrastructure.
Do I think the big bet will pay off the way they (big tech, billionnaires, etc.) think it will?
No. I don't.
Honestly, I don't think the current "extract endlessly and automate everything on God's green Earth" approach is actually sustainable long-term.
We're just not set up that way, societally.
Here's the TLDR:
Humans & technology need to exist synergistically
When companies continuously extract from workers and consumers without replenishing the ecosystem that supports them, eventually the system weakens.
✔️ People stop spending
✔️ Workers burn out
✔️ Trust erodes
✔️ And that same workforce needed to sustain growth can no longer fully participate in the economy they're expected to fuel
AI is a heterotroph—it depends on human input to survive.
And when the source that feeds it dries up and there's nothing left to extract...it starves.
New here? Hi — I’m Tessa.
I spent 12+ years inside recruiting, hiring, and talent strategy (and yes...tech):
☑️ building teams
☑️ partnering with leadership
☑️ leading hiring strategy
☑️ reviewing thousands of resumes
☑️ conducting thousands of interviews
☑️ and watching how labor markets and corporate incentives shape careers in real time
Now I help high-performing professionals navigate the modern job market more strategically — sans burnout or over-working themselves into oblivion — and earning what they're worth.
If you're looking for grounded career or job search strategy from someone who's spent over a decade on the other side of the hiring table, let's connect.
🔗 Book a free Clarity Call here.
