'Are We All Doomed?' The CEO of Fiverr Says AI Is Definitely Taking Your Job. Here's What to Do About It. Fiverr CEO Micha Kaufman told his employees that AI was coming for most jobs — including his.
By Sherin Shibu Edited by Melissa Malamut
Key Takeaways
- Micha Kaufman, the CEO freelance marketplace Fiverr, recently sent an email to staff saying that AI was going to take over their jobs.
- Kaufman advised his employees to master the latest AI tools in their fields.
A McKinsey report predicts that by 2030, AI could automate 30% of U.S. work. A Goldman Sachs report found that AI could eliminate 300 million jobs globally and automate two-thirds of work in the U.S. and Europe.
Now, the CEO of one of the biggest freelancing marketplaces, Fiverr, says that it doesn't matter what profession you choose — AI is coming for your job.
"It does not matter if you are a programmer, designer, product manager, data scientist, lawyer, customer support rep, salesperson, or a finance person — AI is coming for you," Fiverr CEO Micha Kaufman wrote in an internal email sent last month that warned the company's 775 employees about AI's potential to replace their jobs. He has since posted it publicly on X.
In the email, Kaufman disclosed the "unpleasant truth" that AI will soon take over roles, even his own. Tasks that were once considered "easy" will no longer be around, and difficult tasks will become the new easy. In short, AI will create an environment where mastery or "exceptional talent" is a requirement to work in a field.
"If you do not become an exceptional talent at what you do, a master, you will face the need for a career change in a matter of months," Kaufman wrote, adding, "Are we doomed? Not all of us, but those who will not wake up and understand the new reality fast, are, unfortunately, doomed."
Before it gets out somewhere else, this is an email I sent yesterday morning to my team. It applies equally to the freelance community pic.twitter.com/eLnFlJE9CZ
— Micha Kaufman (@michakaufman) April 8, 2025
In the email, Kaufman also outlined steps for someone to become exceptionally talented in their field using AI—and save their job from being automated.
Kaufman advised employees to study the latest tailored AI offerings (for programmers, he suggested Cursor, an AI code editor; for lawyers, the AI tool Legora, which helps with research and document review) and to reach out to team members who are knowledgeable about AI and learn from them.
"Your value will decrease before you know what hit you" if you don't know how to use generative AI, Kaufman wrote.
Kaufman is one of many CEOs advising employees to take an AI-first approach to their work. Last week, Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn publicly posted a memo he sent to employees that said the company was replacing human contract workers with AI. Meanwhile, last month, Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke publicized an internal memo he sent to employees encouraging them to turn to AI before asking for more human employees on a team.
Fiverr operates as a freelancer marketplace, with sellers posting their services for sale, like design or copywriting, and buyers purchasing the services. According to Fiverr's most recent earnings report, the platform had over 3.6 million annual active buyers in 2024. It brought in $391.5 million in revenue for 2024, an 8.3% growth from 2023.
