I Worked for Block. Its A.I. Job Cuts Aren’t What They Seem.

Mr. Zamost was the head of communications, policy and people at Square, now known as Block, from 2015 to 2020.

The texts poured in. “WOW.” “WILD.” “Bloodbath.” As the former head of communications, policy and people at Square, the company now known as Block, I knew what those messages meant without having seen the news.

Block stunned the tech world last week when it announced it was dismissing over 4,000 employees in a radical A.I.-driven restructuring. A.I. is “enabling a new way of working which fundamentally changes what it means to build and run a company,” declared Block’s chief executive, Jack Dorsey, on Thursday. Later that day, workers sent thumbs-down emojis raining down their........

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