'Shark Tank India' judge Anupam Mittal’s bold AI warning leaves the internet divided:‘Here’s the bitter truth’

Anupam Mittal, the Shaadi.com founder and a ‘Shark Tank’ India judge, just dropped a reality check about artificial intelligence that got everyone talking. He posted a blunt warning on LinkedIn about how AI is shaking up the job market, and people didn’t hold back. Some clapped, others pushed back hard. Mittal’s words lit a fire under a big worry: as AI keeps changing the way we work, what does that mean for jobs and careers in the next few years? Let’s break down what he actually said, why it left the internet stirred.

What went down

Mittal’s viral LinkedIn post didn’t mince words. He said AI isn’t coming for coders first, it’s coming for middle managers. The jobs that revolve around coordination, process, and bureaucracy? Those are the ones on the chopping block now, not the technical roles everyone thought would be first to go.

“If you are a ‘manager’, here’s the bitter truth. AI isn’t coming for the coders first. It’s coming for middle management,” he wrote. That line alone drew thousands of eyeballs. He pointed out that many of those classic leadership skills, knowing who to call, how to get stuff done, don’t matter as much anymore. AI can do all that, and faster.




He didn’t stop there. Mittal said that climbing the ladder just for authority’s sake is losing its value fast. “You got paid for knowing who to call and how to get things done. That knowledge premium is now zero,” he said.

He also gave examples from companies he’s invested in—some are making hundreds of crores with just tiny teams, thanks to AI agents. He called out the rise of “Individual Contributor Plus” (IC Plus) professionals. Basically, if you can build, code, create, or sell, using AI as a tool, you’re set up for the future.

He put it bluntly: “The ‘VP of Operations’ who doesn’t actually operate anything is an endangered species.” AI is getting better at handling messy, unpredictable workflows and unstructured data, places where managers used to be essential.

“If your job is mostly coordination, with no measurable output, you’re overhead. And in a high-interest-rate world, overhead gets cut,” Mittal warned. His advice? Focus on real skills, not just fancy job titles.

How the internet reacted

Mittal’s post got a ton of reactions. Plenty of people agreed — AI really is changing how companies work, and the old office hierarchy is getting a shakeup.

One user summed it up: “This is uncomfortable, but mostly true. AI isn’t replacing leadership. It’s replacing layers. The managers who survive will be the ones who can still do the work, not just talk about it. Decision making, judgment, context, people development — those still matter. But pure coordination as a role? That’s fading fast. The ‘IC plus’ idea nails it. The future isn’t title heavy, it’s capability heavy. If you can think, execute, and use AI as leverage, you’re dangerous in the best way. If you only move work around, the math just doesn’t work anymore.”

However, some people were unconvinced. Others argued that while code can replace many functions of human skill, it cannot replace important skills such as leadership, emotional intelligence, and the ability to make judgment calls. For example, one user stated that in his experience, through trial and error over the last several years, the most effective way to achieve results was through collaboration and team-building, which is an area where AI cannot replicate what humans can offer.