AI Startup’s Worker Surveillance System Sparks Outrage After Y Combinator Demo
An AI startup, Optifye.ai, founded by Indian-origin entrepreneurs Vivaan Baid and Kushal Mohta, has drawn intense criticism following a Y Combinator demo showcasing its worker-monitoring technology. The system uses computer vision to track assembly line workers’ performance, generating real-time productivity data for factory managers.
The demo, which has since been removed from Y Combinator’s social media, depicted the founders role-playing as supervisors using their software. In a clip, Baid is shown reprimanding a worker, identified only as “Number 17,” for failing to meet hourly output targets. “You haven’t hit your hourly output even once today,” Baid states in the video, adding, “Rough day? More like a rough month.”
Backlash and Criticism
The demo immediately ignited a firestorm of criticism on social media. Many users accused the startup of dehumanizing workers and promoting exploitative labor practices. Christopher Amidon, founder of Subsea Robotics, wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “Leave it to a bunch of children who’ve never worked a real job for a single day in their lives—and still haven’t graduated college—to come up with some obnoxious slave-driving dystopian s**t like this.” Others condemned the system as “sweatshops-as-a-service,” with some even comparing it to “promoting slavery.”
Despite the widespread criticism, there were some defenders of the concept. Vedant Nair, a former Y Combinator participant, acknowledged the demo’s questionable presentation while pointing out that similar worker-monitoring tools are already in use globally. Intercom CEO Eoghan McCabe argued that critics should reconsider their stance if they continue to buy goods manufactured in countries where such systems are common.
Founders’ Background
Vivaan Baid and Kushal Mohta, both Duke University graduates, co-founded Optifye.ai. Their website states that their exposure to manufacturing environments influenced their decision to develop the software. “My family has been running a manufacturing company since before I was born,” Baid wrote on the company’s Y Combinator profile. Mohta shared a similar background, saying that his unrestricted access to factory floors since age 15 helped shape the idea for Optifye.
Optifye.ai has been contacted for comment.
