What happens when your first ten hires are not people at all? At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, happening October 27–29 at San Francisco’s Moscone West, we will explore the new wave of startups that are replacing or augmenting early employees with AI agents. Imagine outbound sales, billing, and customer support—fully automated from day one.
This panel, hosted on the Builders Stage, features a mix of technical founders and seasoned operators who are already implementing these changes. They will debate where the line between human and machine should be drawn and consider how far is too far.
Caleb Peffer, founder and CEO of Firecrawl, is helping over 350,000 developers and companies like Shopify and Zapier plug AI directly into the live web. His developer-first platform is reshaping how AI agents interact with the internet and scale using clean data.
Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, founder and CEO of Artisan, made waves with his “Stop Hiring Humans” campaign. His company raised $35 million to build AI employees, starting with sales. He will share bold insights on replacing go-to-market teams with code.
Sarah Franklin, CEO of Lattice and former Salesforce president and CMO, brings hard-won wisdom on scaling companies with impact. She has built and led real teams at the highest level and knows exactly where AI helps and where it hurts.
Whether you are already embedding AI into your stack or just testing prompts with your product team, this conversation is about more than hype. It is about getting real on ROI, trust, team dynamics, and what it means to build a business that moves faster than ever with fewer human hands.
This session is one of hundreds featured across five industry stages, plus breakouts and roundtables. Get your pass to Disrupt 2025 before prices increase in mid-September.
Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital, and Elad Gil are just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They are here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Do not miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech. Get your ticket now and save before prices rise.
San Francisco | October 27-29, 2025