Tech companies tell job applicants: Be AI-pilled (but not too AI-pilled!)

Tech companies are urging prospective employees to be enthusiastic about Artificial Intelligence (AI), but not to an extreme degree. Éanna Kelly, a contributing editor at Sifted, admits to being an "AI laggard" and shares his experiences of hiring nine startup founders who exhibit strong characteristics such as stubbornness and dislike for management.

At the Sifted Summit 2026, Zoom's Andreas Klauser addressed Europe's fastest-growing companies, startups, and investors, emphasizing the importance of AI, revenue, and how growth can slow down after a certain point. He also mentioned that enterprise customers are keen on witnessing AI's Return on Investment (ROI) promptly. For startups in 2023, the focus is on proving the AI products' benefits to companies more swiftly.