E-commerce startup Dukaan implements AI chatbot, cuts 90% staff

E-commerce startup Dukaan has made a bold move by replacing 90 per cent of its customer support team with an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, as revealed by founder and CEO Suumit Shah on Tuesday. The decision was driven by a focus on profitability, with Shah stating that customer support costs were reduced by 85 per cent, and resolution time decreased from over two hours to a mere three minutes.

"We had to lay off 90 per cent of our support team because of this AI chatbot. Tough? Yes. Necessary? Absolutely," tweeted Shah.

We had to layoff 90% of our support team because of this AI chatbot.

Tough? Yes. Necessary? Absolutely.

The results?

Time to first response went from 1m 44s to INSTANT!
Resolution time went from 2h 13m to 3m 12s
Customer support costs reduced by ~85%

Here's how's we did it 🧵

— Suumit Shah (@suumitshah) July 10, 2023

However, the tweet received criticism from several Twitter users who found it insensitive. In response, Shah added, "Given the state of the economy, startups are prioritising 'profitability' over striving to become 'unicorns,' and so are we."

Shah elaborated on Lina, the AI assistant that purportedly replaces generic and delayed responses, improves resource availability, and enhances communication. After a series of 12 tweets, Shah mentioned that the company is currently hiring for multiple roles.

When a Twitter user enquired about the assistance provided to the laid-off staff, Shah directed them to look for his LinkedIn post, reiterating that it was a difficult decision.

"As expected, 'someone' will get offended on behalf of 'someone else,' so I had this reply ready: Assistance ke bare mein jab Linkedin pe post karunga tab dekh lena mere dost, yahaan Twitter pe log 'profitability' dekhte hai 'sympathy' nahi," Shah tweeted.

A Twitter user expressed their concern, writing, "Laying off is never a pleasant experience, why is the need to proclaim and be proud about it."

The announcement comes shortly after Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, dismissed concerns about AI threatening jobs as "nonsense."