Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Block, envisions AI replacing human middle managers to create a more efficient company structure. In a recent blog post, Dorsey and Block’s lead independent director Roelof Botha stated the company is transitioning toward a model where AI tracks projects and assigns work. Their goal is to build a company as an intelligence rather than a traditional hierarchy.
Block co-founder Jack Dorsey and lead independent director Roelof Botha have shared a vision where artificial intelligence could assume the role of middle managers. They stated AI can track projects, identify issues, and share information faster than humans.
The company is in the early stages of transitioning toward this model. “We’re questioning the underlying assumption: that organizations have to be hierarchically organized with humans as the coordination mechanism,” they said.
Dorsey and Botha aim to replace what a hierarchy does, not just augment it. “We’re after something different: a company built as an intelligence, or mini-AGI,” they wrote in the post.
This follows a major shake-up at Block in February where roughly 40% of staff were cut. Dorsey attributed that decision to the rapid acceleration of AI at the company and the need to stay competitive.
While AI may play a large role, people will still be involved in key business and ethical decisions. Employees would be reorganized into three roles: individual contributors, directly responsible individuals, and player-coaches.
Dorsey and Botha argue that hierarchical management impedes information flow. “Companies move fast or slow based on information flow. Hierarchy and middle management impede information flow,” they added.
They believe this pattern will reshape how companies operate. “We believe the pattern behind this, a company organized as an intelligence rather than a hierarchy, is significant enough that it will reshape how companies of all kinds operate over the coming years,” they said.
