alt Hacker NewsThis reads more like it's a single employees gripe than a real thing that's happening. They're not using the metrics in performance reviews, and it's a new AI tool that AWS probably wants legitimate usage data out of.
That said, if you can't figure out how to use AI in a software job you should look into it. Not using AI at this point is a lot like not using CAD as an architect.
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> Not using AI at this point is a lot like not using CAD as an architect.
Does CAD software regularly generate an incorrect design that results in a catastrophic failure of the building?
It's 90% real where I work, which is not Amazon but is a peer company. They haven't explicitly said that tokens are used to measure performance, but when managers are posting token usage leaderboards each week with no further explanation, we take the hint.
I think it’s real. I’m at a huge SV tech company and at least half the people here are “token maxing”.
AI is genuinely useful for many tasks. But 2x or greater business value from engineering orgs isn’t it. And even if it was business are terrible at measuring value added on an individual basis.
What they can measure though is token use. I’ve heard the same thing from other large companies my friends work for.
It’s bad enough that I’ve moved a significant amount of money out of US large-cap stocks.
"They're not using the metrics in performance reviews" means almost nothing. It doesn't mean managers at every level are not frequently looking at those numbers. Anyone from Amazon will tell you how much "hint" they get from management about using those tools.
Amazon has far more roles than just software. PMs, FC area managers, managers - if your job involves writing anything you're expected to be using AI in some capacity.
>Not using AI at this point is a lot like not using CAD as an architect.
You should have asked AI to come up with a better analogy.
I have been not using AI since the beginning and nothing has changed for me. I have only watched my coworkers and the industry get dimmer and get faster at getting dimmer. I have witnessed professionals become total amateurs and form “well the AI generated this unreviewed report” as their basis of knowledge.
No thanks I’ll just watch y’all slip down the slope.
> That said, if you can't figure out how to use AI in a software job you should look into it. Not using AI at this point is a lot like not using CAD as an architect.
When LLMs are capable of actually doing a good job, then it might be like that. We are not there yet, and we may never be.
Apparently it's real. Meta has a tokenmaxxing leaderboard too.
"Wow, look at how fast employee # 2 is setting money on fire! Let's promote him!"
> They're not using the metrics in performance reviews
Heh. No need to be ashamed, I used to believe them when they lied to me like this too!
It is being used in performance reviews, source: recent Amazon SWE.
They also use a bunch of dumb metrics like, total PRs submitted, total comments made on PRs, etc. To the point that, there are multiple heavily used internal tools to game these metrics. Eg, auto-comment LGTM on any approved PR. Thus, making the metrics even worse than they would have been prior.