Gradient Dissent: Conversations on AI What a $42B Software Co. Really Spends on AI Tools
30 snips
Jan 20, 2026 
Mike Cannon-Brookes, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Atlassian, shares insights from his decades of experience in technology. He stresses that AI won't replace jobs but enhance human productivity, arguing that successful collaboration between people and AI is crucial. He discusses custom API trends, the significance of developer experience for ROI, and how AI aids creativity but not original idea generation. With a focus on mentoring junior developers through AI tools, Mike emphasizes sustainable growth over short-term revenue while reflecting on the importance of accountability in coding.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
AI Optimizes Workflows, Doesn't Erase Them
- Atlassian views itself as solving people and workflow problems rather than pure technical problems.
- AI will automate boxes in workflows but won't eliminate the need for humans coordinating processes.
Assign Agents Through Your Workflow Tool
- Assign work to agents inside your work management tool to capture results and integrations.
- Ensure agent outputs return as files, links, comments, or approvals so humans can review and continue the flow.
Teamwork Graph Powers Organizational Memory
- Atlassian built a 'teamwork graph' linking billions of objects across apps to create an enterprise knowledge graph.
- That permissioned graph plus LLMs becomes an organizational memory powering search and context-aware AI features.
