Are you in favor of mass AI-driven layoffs?

This is not a moral question. It is a market reality. The right question is not "am I in favor?" — it is "how do I prepare, and how do I lead my team through it?" Responsible companies make the transition with humanity. But they make it.

How do you talk with a young son or nephew about their career now?

The direct guidance: "dive headfirst into learning AI. For at least the next 10 years, our role as humans will be to direct AI." Careers based on executing tasks will suffer. Careers based on directing AI, exercising judgment, and managing human relationships will grow.

What should I do if I was just laid off because of AI?

As Paulo Castello wrote, "a layoff is not the end of the world. It is part of market dynamics." Use it as a moment of reflection — am I doing what I love? Do I identify with the company? Should I become more employable (by studying AI hard) or open my own business? That is how Paulo started Fhinck — after being let go.

Will Brazilian companies lay off en masse due to AI?

The movement has already started (Itaú, Amazon globally, several Brazilian tech companies in 2025-2026). It will accelerate. The professional's question is "am I in the group that will be replaced, or in the group that will direct the replacement?" The difference is deliberate AI study, not natural talent.

How can my company make this transition responsibly?

Direct communication, real reinvention support (not just severance), reasonable lead time, and offer internal paths for those who want to reinvent themselves for AI First roles. Fhinck went through a 50-to-6 transition — natural friction, difficult conversations, but handled with humanity.

You Are Not What You Are Good At — the Identity Shift AI Forces on Every Professional

The mass layoffs at Itaú (2025-2026), Amazon, and several Brazilian tech companies exposed a topic Brazilian board members still avoid: who we are professionally is being redefined by AI. Ignoring it costs careers.

"Embrace quickly the idea that you are not what you are good at. It is difficult! Being good at something professionally is part of our identity. (...) But humanity's genius has made us take another leap forward. And now we need to reinvent ourselves."

— Paulo Castello, January 2026

What Happened at Itaú (and at Amazon, and Elsewhere)

In January 2026, Itaú announced a round of mass layoffs associated — among other factors — with AI-enabled operational reorganization. It was not the first and will not be the last. In parallel, Amazon globally made a similar move, Google likewise, and Microsoft announced a refocus with cuts in legacy areas and massive investment in AI divisions.

What this shows: AI-driven layoffs have moved from exception to consolidated trend at large companies.

And the standard response from Brazilian professionals was predictable: moral outrage, fear, paralysis. Some social media platforms exploded with "let us boycott companies that lay off for AI." Paulo Castello went on a CBN interview about the topic and made the observation that stood apart from the emotional moment:

"A layoff is not the end of the world. It is part of market dynamics. Often a layoff is the event that makes you reflect on whether you are doing what you love, whether you identify with the company, whether you need to think about how to become more employable — and often whether it is the moment to open your own business. That is how I started my business (after being let go)."

The Identity Shift That AI Forces

The phrase that most unsettles in Paulo's original post is:

"You are not what you are good at."

Why is it unsettling? Because it is the definition that most professionals use to define themselves:

"I am an accountant" (because I analyze financial statements all day)
"I am a designer" (because I know how to do illustration)
"I am a software engineer" (because I know how to program)
"I am a financial analyst" (because I know how to build spreadsheet models)
"I am a lawyer" (because I know how to draft contracts)

AI, in 2026, performs all of those tasks. It will not replace the entire professional — but it will replace the part that was "what you were good at."

A professional who identifies with the task loses identity. A professional who identifies with judgment, directing AI, navigating ambiguity, human relationships, and conceptual creativity maintains or increases their value.

The shift is:

From "I am what I know how to do" to "I am what I know how to direct and what I know how to resolve."

What to Say to the Young Person Starting Their Career

Paulo has written about the difficulty of advising a nephew who works in financial services:

"I had difficulty advising a nephew who works in financial services. If he were at Fhinck, in a year his role would no longer exist. We are going through a clear transition in which what matters is not to execute tasks, but to direct with intelligence."

And he concluded:

"My guidance has been: dive headfirst into learning Artificial Intelligence. For at least the next 10 years, our role as humans will be to direct AI."

Practical translation for a young professional in 2026:

Do not build a career around executing tasks (analyzing statements, building spreadsheets, processing orders). Those will be fully absorbed by AI within 5-10 years.
Build a career around directing AI (defining the problem, scoping the agent, judging the output, adjusting the flow).
Build a career in layers that AI still does not perform well (deep relationship management, long-term judgment, conceptual creativity, human leadership of hybrid human + agent teams).

A traditional career built on "being good at X" has lost its future. A career built on "knowing how to direct AI in X" has gained it.

What to Say to the C-Level Who Will Need to Lead This Transition

Brazilian CEOs and directors will need to have these conversations — with their teams, their families, and their boards. Some pragmatic guidelines:

1. Direct Communication, Not Euphemism

Do not dress up an AI-driven layoff as a "corporate restructuring" without naming the cause. Professionals are not naive — they see through it. Euphemism destroys trust.

Fhinck, in the transition from 50 to 6, communicated the reason directly. It hurt more in the moment, but it preserved the relationship. Former Fhinckers still speak positively about the experience.

2. Real Support for Reinvention

Severance + outplacement + 3 months of access to technical AI training. This is not charity — it is responsibility. Laying someone off without offering a path creates reputational liability that becomes a future hiring problem.

3. Internal Path for Those Who Want to Reinvent Themselves

Rather than laying off 100% immediately, offer a requalification path for part of the team. Those who agree to study AI weekly and migrate from an executing role to an orchestrating role can stay. Those who prefer to leave, leave with dignity.

Fhinck did this. Result: of the original 50, some became agent orchestrators (part of the 6 who stayed). Others left well, with clarity.

4. Do Not Outsource the Difficult Conversation

The CEO needs to be personally present in the hardest conversations. Delegating to HR is operational cowardice — and the team feels it.

The Reflection Left for the Everyday Professional

If you are a Brazilian professional reading this, three questions:

How much of my weekly routine could be handled by a well-configured AI agent? If the answer is >50%, you are in a risk zone in 24-36 months.
How much of my weekly routine involves directing AI, deciding under ambiguity, or managing human relationships? If the answer is <20%, you need to pivot.
Do I have a weekly AI learning routine? If the answer is "occasionally," you are on a path toward trouble. Without a rhythm, being 6 months behind arrives on schedule (see Sharpening the Axe).

Conclusion

The phrase "you are not what you are good at" is uncomfortable because it challenges an identity built over decades. But it is accurate.

Those who absorb the shift and reinvent themselves become protagonists of the AI First era. Those who resist become a statistic in a layoff report.

Fhinck went through this transition firsthand — from 50 to 6 people in 24 months. It helps Brazilian C-levels and board members navigate it with method and humanity. Schedule a conversation.