cross-posted from: https://awful.systems/post/7579135
I owe my SOUL․md to the company store
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpoCzQ-va94&list=UU9rJrMVgcXTfa8xuMnbhAEA - video
https://pivottoai.libsyn.com/20260312-ai-companies-try-to-pay-staff-in-ai-tokens-not-money - podcasttime: 6 min 57 sec
This is some of the dumbest shit I have ever read. And I don’t mean conceptually, I mean everybody playing improv on what actually happened.
Some guy says ‘during interviews some developers now care about how much compute budget they have access to’
Every idiot since then: ‘omg company scrip???’
I am so tired of the groupthink yes-and game on social media. Any stupid bullshit gets boosted if it plays to confirmation bias while any pushback is reflexively punished.
The problem is that it definitely feels like something a libertarian tech bro would try.
It’s also not entirely false, or at least without precedent.
Richardson has a unique and progressive way of running his company. To update an old adage, Richardson is putting his bitcoin where his mouth is. His platform pays its 250-plus employees in bitcoin. He takes his pay this way too. The company has opted for the bitcoin standard to both show commitment to the cause and streamline payroll for its global workforce.
More relevant: Sam Altman floated the idea (compute as currency) two years ago. link
They’re trying to reinvent company scrip? In the United States, payment in scrip became illegal in 1938 as part of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
This idea was most recently floated by Thibault Sottiaux at OpenAI: [Twitter, archive]
I am increasingly asked during candidate interviews how much dedicated inference compute they will have to build with Codex.
Aren’t these candidates asking about token budgets for doing their job? This has nothing to do with compensation…
They likely don’t know their staff have lives outside of the company and assume they are on board with everything as they are a family.
They’re going to have these giant data centers, and they will have residences next door, and a small little town will grow up around it, and the only money allowed will be company scrip, and these people will be trapped, essentially slaves.
What’s is that good for?
Owing your soul to the company store?
When society finally crumbles and the people storm the white house I have dibs on that gold wall sconce from home depot. The one on the left side, in that room where the lamp is, by the end table.
call me back when my landlord decides AI tokens are acceptable for rent
Odd you would say that, guess what the company’s new venture is?
They also need to be accepted for groceries and drugs.
The new company scrip.
Still illegal.
yet far more useless than company scrip
The US is feudal now. There are no laws except the whim of the owning class.
At least you could buy food with company scrip.
Seems like they just have excess capacity and need some way to use it
You know I just checked, and my landlord doesn’t take AI tokens.
How big is the token? If its heavy enough we could use it to beat the landlords to death
A plot point in Terry Pratchett’s book Going Postal was postage stamps being used as currency, because they were backed by the postal system, which was seen as trustworthy.
This is a similar line of thinking, but far more delusional, as an AI company is nowhere near as trusted as the postal service.
US Forever stamps are inflation-proof, too.
AI tokens, I’m not so sure.
Except these stamps can’t even be handed over to someone else so you can’t even pay for anything with them. So the delusion is that you’re going to want to spend a significant part of your income on LM tokens no matter what.
You load 16 gigs, and what do you get? Sudo apt update && apt upgrade, Admin dont you call on me, cause I can’t compute, I owe my soul to the LLM.
Omg this needs to be turned into a proper cover/parody of the original song. Would be amazing and popular i am sure.
💯
They’re bringing
sexyscrip backThis has always been the goal
Because AI companies are running out of money?
Any employee willing to be paid by token or crypto gets what they deserve. The only reason these companies can get away with this crap is because the proletariat are allowing it.
You need a job, and you want it to be exciting; that’s understandable. Maybe you’re trying to break into the industry. Yes, it’s tough. People will tell you that you’ve got to pay your dues or some other “toe the line” bullshit.
People need to realize that companies are not friends, they are a means to an end. And you are their means to an end. They will use you, just like you will use them. If they want you to work pong hours for as little pay as they can get away with, walk away. There are other jobs out there. They may not be glamorous, but they are out there.
