Coinbase CEO will fire engineers who refuse to use AI tools
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has made AI adoption mandatory for all engineers at the crypto exchange, revealing he fired several employees who refused to comply.
Speaking on the "Cheeky Pint" podcast with Stripe co-founder John Collison, Armstrong described the move as part of a company-wide mandate to accelerate AI integration.
Founded in 2012 and listed on NASDAQ in 2021 under the ticker COIN, Coinbase is one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges globally, with over 100 million users and more than $200 billion in assets under management. Armstrong, a former Airbnb engineer, has built a reputation for his uncompromising approach to management and his belief in rapid adoption of new technologies.
According to Armstrong, Coinbase purchased enterprise licenses for GitHub Copilot and Cursor, making them available to all engineers. However, when he was told it might take months for half the engineering team to begin using the tools, he issued a company-wide order in Slack.
“AI is important. You all need to learn it and at least complete the registration. You don’t have to use it every day, but you must complete the registration by this weekend,” Armstrong wrote. He added that he would hold a meeting to confront employees who failed to comply.
At that meeting, some staff cited reasonable excuses, such as returning from travel, but others admitted they had simply not registered. Armstrong said those employees were dismissed.
“This was a tough approach, and some people didn’t like it,” he admitted. “But AI is not optional. It is mandatory.”
Since then, Coinbase has reinforced its AI-first policy with additional training, including monthly sessions where teams share innovative applications of AI in development.
While Armstrong has framed the move as a necessary step to keep Coinbase at the forefront of technology, Collison raised a cautionary note during the podcast, warning of the risks of relying heavily on AI-generated code.
“Clearly, having AI help you write code is very useful. But how to run a codebase coded by AI is still unclear,” Collison said.
Founded in 2012 and listed on NASDAQ in 2021 under the ticker COIN, Coinbase is one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges globally, with over 100 million users and more than $200 billion in assets under management. Armstrong, a former Airbnb engineer, has built a reputation for his uncompromising approach to management and his belief in rapid adoption of new technologies.
According to Armstrong, Coinbase purchased enterprise licenses for GitHub Copilot and Cursor, making them available to all engineers. However, when he was told it might take months for half the engineering team to begin using the tools, he issued a company-wide order in Slack.
“AI is important. You all need to learn it and at least complete the registration. You don’t have to use it every day, but you must complete the registration by this weekend,” Armstrong wrote. He added that he would hold a meeting to confront employees who failed to comply.
At that meeting, some staff cited reasonable excuses, such as returning from travel, but others admitted they had simply not registered. Armstrong said those employees were dismissed.
“This was a tough approach, and some people didn’t like it,” he admitted. “But AI is not optional. It is mandatory.”
Since then, Coinbase has reinforced its AI-first policy with additional training, including monthly sessions where teams share innovative applications of AI in development.
While Armstrong has framed the move as a necessary step to keep Coinbase at the forefront of technology, Collison raised a cautionary note during the podcast, warning of the risks of relying heavily on AI-generated code.
“Clearly, having AI help you write code is very useful. But how to run a codebase coded by AI is still unclear,” Collison said.
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Has been exploring the enigmas of the crypto industry since 2017, transforming them into accessible narratives. Relies on dark chocolate and nuts as a secret source of energy and inspiration.
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