Y Combinator Pulls Support for AI Startup After Video of Boss Barking at Human Worker, Calling Him "Number 17"

Scientific Management, sometimes called "Taylorism" after its founder, Frederick W. Taylor, is the idea that human workers can be fine-tuned to be more efficient. If a garment factory worker could make a shirt two seconds quicker by standing instead of sitting, then a Taylorist boss would have them stand, because those two seconds per shirt add up over time. That was back in the 1880s, but lately Taylorism hasn't just been surviving — it's thriving, as wireless gadgets and management software allow bosses to monitor workers in ways Taylor could only dream of. For examples, look at Amazon's tracking wristbands for its warehouse workers, UPS fitting its trucks with cameras — but not air conditioning — and monitoring software that follows remote workers at home. Add to that list a startup called Optifye, a Y Combinator-backed venture that's "building AI performance monitoring for factory workers, boosting line efficiency for manufacturing companies." The company is founded by two under ... Read full article.