AI is no longer optional in tech companies; it is becoming mandatory, reports The Wall Street Journal. While businesses were previously just experimenting with new tools, major players—from Amazon and Google to Meta—are now systematically measuring how employees use AI and directly factoring this into performance evaluations. In some roles, candidates without AI skills aren’t even considered anymore.
AI is no longer optional in tech companies; it is becoming mandatory, reports The Wall Street Journal. While businesses were previously just experimenting with new tools, major players—from Amazon and Google to Meta—are now systematically measuring how employees use AI and directly factoring this into performance evaluations. In some roles, candidates without AI skills aren’t even considered anymore.
Companies aren’t just encouraging AI adoption—they’re implementing strict mechanisms. For example, startup Conductor has introduced an «AI competency score» from 1 to 5 for employees: those who create processes that improve others' work receive the maximum score. Plus, there are bonuses: creating the best AI process can earn a paid vacation worth thousands of dollars. CEO Seth Besmertnik says, «We use both carrots and sticks,» adding that «the company can only grow if all employees have a high level of competence.»
AI skills are becoming a filter at the hiring stage. At Conductor, candidates are tested during interviews: they’re asked to solve problems using AI, explain their choice of tools and prompts, and describe how they would have approached the task six months earlier. If a person doesn’t demonstrate confident AI proficiency, they simply aren’t considered.
According to consulting firm Section, about 42% of IT workers say their managers expect them to use AI in daily work—up from 32% eight months earlier. Nearly half of technology and telecom companies are already seeing positive returns from generative AI—compared to 35% across the market overall.
But implementation isn’t going as smoothly as it might appear. Employees are skeptical: not everyone is convinced that AI actually saves time, and amid ongoing discussions by executives regarding staff reductions, anxiety is emerging among the workforce. «This is only intensifying in IT. Will employees widely adopt AI if they think it will cost them their jobs?» the study authors wonder.
Major companies are already actively tracking AI usage. Amazon’s AWS division has dashboards showing how engineers use AI tools, which factor into promotion decisions. Google has begun including AI usage as part of developer performance reviews. At Meta, the new evaluation system can even count how many lines of code were written using AI. At Microsoft, managers discuss with employees exactly how they apply AI in their work, while Salesforce is direct: if you’re not using AI, you’re likely underperforming.
Implementing AI isn’t just about «distributing tools.» Companies are experimenting: first, people try different solutions, the best ones become established, and at some point, usage becomes mandatory. At Salesforce, for example, there are already processes that can’t be done without AI: vacation requests or self-assessments go through AI agents, and, according to management, «virtually 100% of employees» use AI in some form.
The pressure to adopt is especially high at large tech companies: they’ve invested billions in AI and need to show returns. Labor market consultants say, «They need to prove ROI.» If companies can’t effectively use AI internally, they’ll have a harder time selling these solutions to clients.
There remains a small group of skeptics. For instance, at Autodesk, some employees initially used AI tools unofficially because they were blocked. Now the company is focusing on specific scenarios where AI genuinely increases efficiency. CEO Andrew Anagnost acknowledges that resistance can’t be completely avoided, but «such people likely won’t survive in the long run.»