On February 26, Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter and CEO of Block, announced the announcement of more than four thousand employees, including the global startup of the company that runs Square, the Cash App and the Bitcoin ecosystem. The official reason: artificial intelligence.
“Artificial intelligence does not reduce work. It transforms it, accelerates it, and in the most honest cases complements it,” Dorsey wrote, while the Block’s stock suffered a 23% after-hours loss.
The announcement raised alarm in the tech industry, but was also seen in the market as a strategic move anticipating AI-driven structural change.
GLOBAL TREND: IA Y REDUCCIÓN DE PLANTILLAS
Block is not alone. In the past few months, major companies have justified massive restrictions on AI adoption:
Amazon: 30,000 pieces in two oils.
Pinterest: 15% off plants in black.
Salesforce: Supports 9,000 to 5,000 employees.
Duolingo: Funding contracts for 10% of your collaborators.
Dow: Eliminated 4,500 records through process automation.
Under the banner of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, 55,000 players will be awarded AI in 2025, more than double from years ago. 2026 begins with 26,000 tech workers laid off in the first few weeks.
“Artificial intelligence will handle the translation tasks,” Duolingo’s CEO explained.
Patron emphasizes that this is not just an isolated case, but rather a global trend.
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Experts say whether the scores are based on AI’s actual effectiveness or its future promise.
“It’s hard to imagine a 50% efficiency ratio on an enterprise scale that would justify a score of this magnitude,” explained Ethan Mollick, a Wharton professor.
A Harvard Business Review study published in 2026 concluded that many businesses need “AI’s potential, not its actual performance.” Consulting firm Gartner reports that only 1 in every 50 AI turnarounds creates transformational value and 1 in every 5 offers an average ROI.
We would like to inform you that the majority of those rejected by IA could result in offshore contracts with lower salaries and that 55% of employees are left behind. This phenomenon is called AI washing, use AI as an excuse to justify strategic adjustments or rates for excessive contracts.
DORSEY ADVERTISING AND REWARDS WORK
Dorsey explained the magnitude of the change:
“I believe there will be similar structural changes for most over the next year. I prefer to tell you honestly and in my own words that you will be forced to do so in a reactive manner.”
The decision opens up a debate about the future of the workforce: AI increases productivity and takes on more roles, but it also intensifies workloads, increases workforce and increases turnover. Entry-level skills traditionally taught by gateways to new generations are the first to disappear.
NEW LABORATORY MAP
Block may be an atypical case: a for-profit company that applies regressions from strength, not crisis. However, experts advise that the model could be quickly replicated in other companies, assuming a prior peacetime reorganization of the workforce.
“Employees who use AI tools work less, work more,” concludes a study from UC Berkeley and Yale cited by the Harvard Business Review.
A group of experts is now asking how to balance technological innovation and worker protection in a context where artificial intelligence is as suitable for agriculture as it is for coercion.
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