Swedish fintech big Klarna, which pioneered purchase now, pay later, not too long ago introduced plans to make use of AI to spice up effectivity, reducing its worker headcount by practically 50% within the course of.

Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski revealed in an interview with the Monetary Occasions that the corporate is focusing on a “directional” workforce of round 2,000  – a stark drop from the 5,000 staff it had at its peak. 

This discount is already underway, with Klarna trimming its employees to three,800 over the previous yr, largely by means of attrition relatively than layoffs.

What’s the driving power behind Klarna’s leaner future? The mass rollout of AI options, notably in advertising and marketing and customer support. 

By deploying AI in customer support and advertising and marketing areas, Siemiatkowski believes the corporate can preserve and even improve its operations with a smaller crew. 

“Not solely can we do extra with much less, however we will do way more with much less,” he informed the FT.

Klarna’s AI funding comes because it prepares for an anticipated IPO. The corporate hopes to rebound from a difficult interval that noticed its valuation plummet from $46 billion in 2021 to $6.7 billion final yr. 

Touting the advantages of AI – together with a doubling of income per worker from roughly $400,000 to $700,000 – is more likely to be a key side of Klarna’s pitch to traders.

However whereas Klarna sees a promising future in an AI-driven world, Siemiatkowski acknowledged the broader societal implications of the know-how’s speedy development. 

Talking to the BBC, he referred to as on governments to think about alternative routes to assist these displaced by AI, arguing that merely anticipating new jobs to materialize is “too simplistic.”

The Klarna CEO’s feedback replicate a rising concern in regards to the potential for AI to upend the job market on an enormous scale. 

A latest report from the Institute for Public Coverage Analysis warned that beneath a “worst-case situation,” as much as 8 million jobs within the UK alone could possibly be misplaced as a result of AI automation. 

The report emphasised the necessity for proactive insurance policies to handle this transition and guarantee an equitable distribution of AI’s financial advantages.

Klarna shouldn’t be alone in its AI-fueled quest for effectivity. Language studying app Duolingo not too long ago made headlines for shedding human translators in favor of AI options, sparking criticism on social media.

Different experiences have positioned customer support brokers as a number of the most at-risk of AI job replacements. 

As extra firms combine AI into their operations, the problem will likely be to strike a stability between harnessing the know-how’s potential and mitigating its disruptive influence on employees.

For Klarna, the trail ahead is evident: harness AI, streamline operations, and place itself as a leaner, extra agile participant in fintech. 

As Siemiatkowski put it, “I’m very joyful about seeing that that is paying off.” 

The query that continues to be is how society as a complete will adapt to the AI work revolution that Klarna and others are eagerly ushering in.