A tech CEO who cut his staff from over 1,000 to 120 says AI is boosting the value of 'high-agency' generalists
Bird CEO Robert Vis says AI gives an edge to high-agency, multidisciplinary workers who can take ownership across roles.
TL;DR
- AI is shifting the focus from specialists to 'high-agency' generalists in some tech companies.
- Bird CEO Robert Vis states AI leverages employees with high agency and multidisciplinary skills.
- Bird reduced its headcount from over 1,000 to 120 employees over three years through automation and a focus on adaptable workers.
- AI enables employees to work across traditional role boundaries, requiring skills beyond just technical proficiency, such as product sense.
- Other executives like Figma CEO Dylan Field and Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar also note AI empowering generalist behavior and valuing combined subject expertise with technological skills.
- This trend is contrasted with consulting firms that are increasingly prioritizing specialists with deep industry or technical expertise.
- Bird uses AI to help workers in design, support, sales, and accounting, reducing the need for some specialized roles.
- Layoffs at Bird considered qualitative assessments of multidisciplinary capabilities and performance, not just technical skills.
- Bird generated $165 million in EBITDA in 2025 after extensive automation.
- Vis advises companies to use AI to automate repetitive tasks without simply cutting staff, assessing output and employee performance.