Hari Raghavan, the co-founder and CEO of Autograph, has sparked outrage on social media for his comments defending the use of AI surveillance tools to monitor Indian factory workers. Raghavan took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to share his views on the work ethic of Indian employees, arguing that constant supervision is necessary to improve productivity. Raghavan’s comments came in response to the controversy surrounding Optifye.ai, a startup that has developed AI-powered worker monitoring software.
Despite backlash against the company in the US for promoting “dystopian” surveillance, Raghavan argued that such tools are relevant and necessary in India. “I grew up in India, and I don’t think y’all understand how unreliable the work ethic of the average Indian employee is,” Raghavan wrote. He shared personal anecdotes, comparing the efficiency of workers in India and the US, claiming that projects that took three days in the US often took nearly two months in India.
Raghavan made three main points in his defense of AI surveillance:
1. India’s economic growth is hindered by weak work discipline, and monitoring tools could help increase efficiency. 2.
In India, factory worker supervision is not exploitation but a necessity.
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3.
To develop rapidly, India must focus on accountability and a high-performance culture. Raghavan’s comments quickly triggered a fierce reaction on social media. Many users accused him of being insensitive and defending worker exploitation.
“Indian workers spend crazy hours on factory floors for low wages and no protection. Just shut up,” one user wrote. Another commented, “Try working in their shoes.
You wouldn’t last a day.”
Hari Raghavan is a Stanford graduate and co-founder of Autograph, a people intelligence platform. He holds a degree from Northwestern University in Psychology, Political Science, and Mathematical Methods in Social Sciences. The controversy surrounding Raghavan’s comments highlights the ongoing debate about the use of AI in workplace surveillance and the cultural differences in work ethics and expectations between India and the US.
Photo by; julien Tromeur on Unsplash
