‘If it was written by AI, I don’t read it’: GoDaddy CEO’s strict workplace rule

Aman Bhutani stressed that writing is an important part of the thinking process (Representational image/Pexels)

GoDaddy CEO Aman Bhutani shared a strict policy on AI-generated writing at workplace. The executive said he refuses to read documents that appear to have been written using AI and argued that employees should be able to articulate their ideas without relying on technology to write for them.

In an interview with Business Insider, Bhutani explained that he does not want to spend time reading a document if its author has not made the effort to write it themselves.

“If somebody sends me a document and I can tell pretty quickly it was written by AI, I don’t read it,” he said. “Because if the person couldn’t take the time to write it, then I definitely shouldn’t take the time to read it.”

GoDaddy CEO on AI usage

However, Bhutani clarified that his stance does not amount to a complete ban on AI tools. Employees can use the technology to understand words and phrases, but he expects them to develop their own thoughts and communicate them clearly.

Bhutani stressed that writing is an important part of the thinking process, allowing employees to examine, question and refine their ideas. He described this as practising the “art of iteration”.

“What I’m really looking for is: What was the original observation? What was the original hypothesis? What got you interested in this idea? Why do you think it matters?” he said.

The GoDaddy CEO also shared that he believes that human thinking offers something AI cannot replicate. “AI only knows what the internet already knows. It doesn’t know what we know deep inside us, and there are ideas coming from us all the time,” he added.

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Bhutani also shared some of the signs that make him suspect a document has been generated using AI. He pointed out that he works with employees from diverse backgrounds, many of whom do not speak English as their first language.

Length is another factor. Bhutani said he prefers documents that are “punchy and clear” rather than excessively long or unnecessarily elaborate.