Anthropic prioritises empathy, communication over coding in hiring, says co-founder Daniela Amodei 

As artificial intelligence continues to reshape global workplaces and unsettle technology markets, Anthropic Co-Founder and President Daniela Amodei has said the company is placing greater emphasis on human skills such as communication, empathy and curiosity, rather than purely technical expertise, when hiring.  

Speaking in an interview with ABC News that aired over the weekend, Amodei argued that fears of AI replacing humans entirely are overstated. “The number of jobs that AI could do without help from people is vanishingly small,” she said, adding that the qualities that make people human will become more valuable as AI capabilities expand.  

“And what I mean by that is when we look to hire people at Anthropic today, we look for people who are great communicators, who have excellent EQ and people skills, who are kind and compassionate and curious and want to help other people,” Amodei said.  

According to her, the growing integration of AI into the workforce is more likely to enhance the nature of work than eliminate jobs altogether. “Humans plus AI together actually create more meaningful work, more challenging work, more interesting work, high-productivity jobs,” she told ABC News.  

Amodei also suggested that AI could broaden access to opportunity by enabling people without deep technical training to perform complex tasks with the support of intelligent tools.  

Her comments come at a time of heightened anxiety over AI’s impact on jobs and markets, following Anthropic’s recent product launch. Last week, the company unveiled a new suite of enterprise AI tools under its Claude Cowork platform, including plug-ins designed to automate workflows across legal, finance, marketing and sales functions.  

One legal-focused plug-in, capable of reviewing contracts and conducting compliance checks, sparked a sharp sell-off in global software stocks, wiping out an estimated $285 billion in market value in a single trading session. The reaction reflected investor concerns that AI may begin replacing entire software categories, rather than simply assisting professionals.  

While acknowledging that technical skills such as coding could become less central as AI tools grow more capable, Amodei stressed that this shift does not reduce the importance of people. Instead, she argued, it elevates the role of human judgement, collaboration and emotional intelligence in an AI-driven economy.