Proton says it isn’t using AI to lay off staff, but it is asking employees to prove their AI skills in assessments that could cost them their jobs.
The privacy-focused tech company plans to re-interview selected staff about their use of artificial intelligence, with the results feeding into a broader workforce review.
Proton says the exercise is intended to prepare its workforce for an AI-driven future, identify skills gaps, and find employees who can help lead the transition. But with continued employment potentially at stake, the assessments raise questions about how companies should evaluate AI skills without turning adoption into a measure of job security.
Proton’s AI assessments could affect employment
According to an internal memo obtained by 404 Media and subsequently shared by Proton on Reddit, the company plans to re-interview selected employees about their AI skills, with the results potentially affecting their roles, responsibilities, and continued employment.
The interviews, scheduled to run from Nov. 4 to 11, will assess how employees apply AI to real work, the results they achieve, and their ability to adapt as the company changes.
Proton has denied that the initiative is a disguised layoff program. In its Reddit response, the company said it faces a talent shortage, continues to hire, and wants to identify employees who need additional support as well as those capable of leading its AI transition.
However, the internal memo explicitly states that the wider review could affect continued employment. While Proton denies using AI as an excuse for layoffs, the process still puts employees’ futures partly in the hands of an assessment of how they adapt to the technology.
Why Proton is reassessing its workforce
Proton’s decision reflects a broader challenge facing companies adopting AI: determining whether employees can use the technology effectively as expectations around their roles change.
Rather than measuring adoption solely by how frequently employees use AI tools, the assessments appear designed to evaluate how those tools contribute to actual work and whether employees can adapt to new requirements.
However, linking those evaluations to potential employment decisions introduces another challenge. AI proficiency can vary depending on an employee’s role, access to training, and opportunities to use the technology. An assessment may reveal skills gaps, but it does not necessarily establish whether an employee can improve with additional support.
Proton’s approach may be an attempt to avoid making workforce decisions based on AI enthusiasm alone. Rather than assuming that wider adoption will automatically improve results, it appears to be evaluating how effectively employees integrate the technology into their work before deciding what comes next.
What Proton’s AI push means for other businesses
For enterprises racing to adopt AI, Proton’s approach offers a reminder that workforce changes should not run ahead of measurable results. Cutting jobs or pushing employees to use AI does not automatically translate into better output, particularly when the cost of AI usage continues to rise.
Businesses need to assess whether these tools deliver enough value to justify their costs, while giving employees the training and support needed to use them effectively.
Proton’s planned assessments offer one way to assess readiness before making broader workforce decisions, although their outcomes remain unknown.
The goal isn’t to burn through AI tokens, but to make the aggressive push worth it. Without evidence of tangible gains, companies risk spending more on AI while making workforce changes that fail to deliver the improvements they expected.
For now, Proton’s planned interviews illustrate how AI adoption is beginning to influence workforce decisions beyond hiring and training. Other businesses considering similar reviews will need to establish fair evaluation criteria and determine whether the technology is actually improving how employees work before making consequential staffing decisions.
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