What happened

Optifye.ai released a demo video featuring real-time AI camera monitoring of factory workers, with founders Kushal Mohta and Vivaan Baid roleplaying as supervisors scrutinising an underperforming employee. 

The video went viral, drawing widespread criticism for its dystopian approach to worker surveillance. Some people referred to Optifye as a “sweatshop-as-a-service.”  

Y Combinator subsequently removed the video and messages it had posted congratulating the company from its social media platforms due to the public outcry. 

The incident highlighted the potential harms of AI-driven workplace monitoring, including erosion of worker autonomy and dignity, creation of a climate of fear and mistrust, and the risk of bias and discrimination in performance evaluations.

Why it happened

The startup aimed to showcase its AI technology for improving factory efficiency but failed to consider the privacy, dignity and other ethical implications.