AI agents can be born to the first single unicorns-but what social costs? ncvrs.com

Cloud -based computing and distributed digital infrastructure, one-man micro-enterprise is far from a new concept. Inexpensive calculations, remote cooperation, salary processing APIs, social media and e-commerce markets have made it easier for entrepreneurs.

But what about making this one-man business into something fleshy-the company of the unicorn proportions?

Historically, this would have been an opaquely difficult task because of the skills and resources needed, not only for the sizes of the product, but also for the growth and maintenance of a sufficiently plentiful clientele. But AI agents can destroy the future Solo-Preneures of the world.

AI agents are the goal of embedding human workflows into the software and liberates people to do more in less time. Agents can be assigned to the agents and decide on different levels of autonomy. Several AI agents can work with the additional tasks, preparing the way to do some real work on their own.

One interview Last year, with Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, Openai Sam Altman predicted this exact script.

“During my small group chat, this betting pool is with my technology CEO friends in the first year when there is one-man billion dollar company,” Altman said. “Which would have been unimaginable without AI – and now (this) happens.”

In a debate at the Davos annual meeting last week, entrepreneurs and investors’ body also discussed the outlook for a one-man billion dollar business and, more importantly, what could mean for the future of employment.

We trust in the people

A recent history discovers a lot of billions of dollars. Microsoft issued $ 2.5 billion to Mojang Minecraft Maker. 40 employees– Facebook purchased WhatsApp for $ 19 billion when the messaging app maker just 55 employees– Two years ago, Facebook bought Instagram for $ 1 billion. 13 employees in his lines.

This proves that Internet technology has already generated huge companies with a minimal number. But it’s not the same as the one -man unicorn.

Campaeaun QiuCEO of AI Research Lab SaturateWhich is considered agents capable of justification and coding, believes that one -man businesses that AI are likely to help to achieve the big time are where the product is largely self -serving.

“I think the places where it will be the simplest, and first of all,” consumers or prosumeric products that do not require a big market, Qiu explained during the panel conversation. “I think it is entering the market, actually One place where it will be difficult to automate these relationships with other people. “

When generating sales, the better product is not always won; The people behind the product did a better job to build confidence with customers. So if you have to sell your product proactive, you must continue to step up.

“I think the human-man’s trust remains very necessary and very important,” Qiu added.

BenjaminuBio CEO of AI Drug Development Company Formation, Bullish, plays a growing role that AI takes on and beyond its company.

“I think we live in one of the most exciting areas where there will be construction companies,” Liu said in Davos. “There is PhD level intelligence in our pockets, and we start to see that AI systems are doing full teams. I believe that in that world, AI-ninive companies have a fairly significant advantage. ”

However, Liu echoed Qiu’s feelings: although the potential of one-man mega-companies is real, it is unlikely to make sense in business or entrepreneurship and it all applies to the human state that appreciates the relationships.

“The opportunity to get there is earlier than people think,” Liu said. “In my opinion, it takes a long time to be an entrepreneur a kind of lonely journey and wants a co -founder. Companies are still launched by people. I think you want some people to share your trip. ”

So the reality is that we actually get to a place where companies have always started: a founding team with additional skills. Instead of sizing through incremental rental, they maintain this initial slimness with AIs that plug in the gap.

But even if the fabulous one -man unicorn is never done, there are few questions that the upcoming Agentic AI freight train will greatly disturb the workforce.

“AI Employees’ era”

If this still seems hypothetical, think again. Agentic AI has already entered the workforce in the form of lawyers such as Harvey or software engineers such as Cognition devinOr

AI sales agents Also bloomsTo VC-supported Companies like craft boasts by wanting to replace the human workforce – As described in the Distopic Bulletin Board in San Francisco.

Many other companies also establish the foundation of Agentic AI flowering.

The Lattice, HR and the “People Management” platform last estimates $ 3 billion, going on with “digital workers” if you give “digital workers” official employee recordsWhich means that customers’ AI agents really appear in the organizational chart, full of a profile photo and the manager assigned to them.

Sarah Franklinwho joined as CEO of Lattice last yearThis transition was called “the great new age of cooperation” where people and AI agents work side by side. And this means that these agents are treated in a similar way to humans to promote transparency and accountability.

“We want to be a priority for people as a primary, and when he works with AI agents, it is important to understand what they are ordered,” Franklin explained in Davos. “They do not say that AI is a man; Rather, we need to clearly determine where the AI ​​is. As the AI ​​speaks on behalf of brands and people, it makes decisions on behalf of brands and people and integrates into other systems, we must be able to do so. ”

But if companies can work in size without a significant human workforce, what does this mean to society? People have to make money; They need a purpose – wouldn’t society just encourage themselves if people can’t work?

As with previous industrial revolutions, General stay around the AI ​​Revolution The fact that new jobs are growing in the long run – we just don’t know what they are.

“There will be a lot of job creation” Mitchell greenLead Edge Capital is the founder of investment firm, he said in Davos. “If you think when the iPhone came out in 2007 – Uber and Airbnb are now $ 100 billion. (They) could not have existed before that. Where there can be opportunities, companies we do not think of – these will be the next huge business. “

This does not mean that there will be no pain in the short term. And as we can see with the depth of the Chinese AI sensation, the progress of AI is significant in proportion to AI models. And this can be a key distinctive compared to previous industrial and technological revolutions: we may not be able to adapt fast enough.

“I think we can talk a lot about retraining and promotion,” Liu said. “But there is something quite unique at the rate of developments, and how quickly these models improve, especially where we see these AI systems do the work of the whole teams.”

“Ais Manager”

There was a general consensus between the panel that, regardless of the level of change, everyone should learn not only to live with AI, but also to learn how to use workplace development.

For example, with you.com, companies can access API to bring a real-time Internet search to every major language model (LLM). While offering your own agents’ package for each task, companies can also create their own unique agentsSelecting the preferred AI model and giving instructions to the data sources they need to connect.

“We, as CEOs, will be the first generation that controls people and AI” – CEO of You.com Richard Chassis Davoson said. “But I think the most interesting change here is that every contributor, every employee, becomes a manager of AIS. And in this sense, everyone becomes entrepreneur. ”

So the jury is still very much out of see if we will ever see a real one-man unicorn company. However, the principle behind the emotion has already been proven, as we saw with a crazy high value / header rate of WhatsApp, which made $ 345 million for all employees when Facebook bought it.

Even the NVIDIA with a market upper limit of more than $ 3 trillion with relatively slim workforce less than 30,000 employees – This is about $ 100 million per employee.

With the right type of company and the right execution, it is difficult to see that AI will not slip these dollar figures north when the number is south. But it will probably only conclude that you have a desire to build a person alone, with enough entrepreneurial knowledge to embed a strong, defensive business model that someone else cannot repeat on the hat.

But the fact that society is ready to handle it is a completely different question.