Dorsey’s Job Cuts Expose Tech’s Bogus Narrative: Beth Kowitt

When Block Inc. Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey said the financial technology firm would cut 4,000 employees, or almost half its staff, he ignited a debate stretching far beyond the tech sector: Are the mass layoffs a visionary move that foretells the power of artificial intelligence or just AI washing — spin designed to mask bad management decisions?

The substance of the debate might be new, but the deeper framework is not. Ever since there’s been a Silicon Valley, its leaders have worked hard to burnish their images as disruptors and trailblazers by flipping the narrative when they make mistakes or decide that ...