The Indian CEO has been the subject of much criticism after claiming that 90% of their support staff had been replaced by artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot.
Suumit Shah, the founder of Dukaan, tweeted that the chatbot they employed resulted in a dramatic increase in both the initial response and resolution time for customer inquiries.
The tweet provoked strong negative reactions online.
It occurs during a period when there has been a great deal of discussion and worry about AI replacing people's jobs, particularly in the services sector.
In a series of tweets with over one million views, Mr Shah declared the hard choice of letting go of personnel to make room for a chatbot. He remarked that it had been a "tough" decision, yet inevitable.
Mr Shah declared that because of the economic conditions, his company was prioritising turning a profit rather than striving to become a 'unicorn' and he hoped to address their customer service issues which had been a problem for some time.
He also documented how they had managed to construct the bot and the AI platform in a timely manner, so that each of Dukaan's customers could have a personalized AI assistant. He stated that the bot was responding to any kind of inquiries with promptness and pinpoint accuracy.
He suggested that in this day and age, it's no longer far-fetched to launch a business. He believes that if someone has the right idea and a competent team, they can make their aspirations come true.
Mr Shah mentioned that the company is in the process of recruiting for various positions.
Many users voiced their disapproval of his tweets; they contended that his choice had an adverse effect on his staff's lives, describing it as "heartless".
One user questioned what sort of assistance was given to the 90% of staff that had been let go, as there was no indication of this in the report.
Another commented, "The business may have done the right thing, yet it shouldn't have been turned into a jubilant/promotional discussion about it."
Mr Shah replied to one tweet saying "as anticipated, someone will take offense on somebody else's behalf" and stated that he would post about help for his personnel on LinkedIn, as on Twitter, people are looking for "profitability rather than compassion".
Over the last few years, ChatGPT and similar generative AI tools have become more widespread and easier to access. It has been noted that companies are using them as a means to enhance productivity while reducing expenditure. This use of technology has made personnel worried about their employment prospects.
In March, Goldman Sachs released a study indicating that AI could potentially replace up to 300 million full-time jobs. This has sparked apprehensions in India, where many companies are investing in AI to manufacture products.
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