Amplitude CEO on AI Transformation in 12 Months

How Spencer Skates Transformed Amplitude's AI Culture

This is Spencer Skates - Amplitude CEO/co-founder (YC W12, now public company) - being remarkably candid about their late arrival to AI and how they caught up in 12 months. The story is useful for any established company trying to transform.

"This is the wrong way to think about it." When executives asked "What's our AI strategy?" in 2023, Spencer pushed back. His co-founder saw "tremendous grifting" - promises about replacing jobs and creating abundance that the actual model capabilities couldn't deliver. The jagged capabilities made it impossible for non-practitioners to know what fell in which bucket.

The turning point was coding tools. When Cursor and Claude started transforming software engineering productivity, the skeptics couldn't deny it anymore. October 2024: Spencer hired Wade Chambers (Silicon Valley legend) and acquired Command AI (YC company). Both became "change agents."

AI Week was the transformation catalyst. Two days of training, then hackathon. Key move: had VPs and engineering managers demonstrate the tech in front of the entire org. One product leader vibe-coded dark mode for Amplitude live. Everyone saw leaders saying "this is the thing" and showing how they do it. The rest of the week was "work on stuff you're already doing, except faster with Cursor."

"Technology first understanding of what is possible." SAS playbook is: talk to customers, ask what they want, prioritize, build, deliver, repeat. That doesn't work with AI because customers can't describe what's possible. You need engineering teams who understand model capabilities first, then map back to product problems.

Two reorgs in one year, plus three acquisitions. Some leaders "very much in the SAS modality" weren't right for the future. They brought in YC founders from Craftful, Anari, and June. The combination of longtime Amplitude employees plus AI-native founders has been "very special."

10 Insights From Amplitude's AI Transformation

• AI skeptics until Oct 2024 - Co-founders saw grifting; capabilities didn't match hype
• Coding tools were the proof - Cursor/Claude impact on engineering undeniable
• AI Week - Training + hackathon; leaders demo in front of org
• Technology first - Can't ask customers what they want; understand models first
• Two reorgs in 12 months - Moved out leaders stuck in SAS modality
• Acquired 3 YC companies - Command AI, Craftful team, June, Anari
• MCP server emerged from hackathon - Engineer Brian Giori just built it
• AI Visibility launched - Doubled new signups; free lead generation
• "Ask AI" coming Jan - Cursor for analytics; chat interface for analysis
• 800 people, 200 in product/eng - Still felt like "can know most people"

What This Means for Public Companies Adopting AI

A public company CEO admits they were AI skeptics until October 2024 - then transformed in 12 months with AI Week, two reorgs, and three acquisitions. The playbook for established companies: create change agents, force leadership to demo the tech publicly, and move out people stuck in the old modality.