GitHub CEO says Microsoft's memo about evaluating AI use is 'totally fair game'
Company culture now includes thinking about AI use, at least according to one tech leader.
On a recent episode of the "Decoder" podcast, GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke defended a Microsoft memo that asked managers to evaluate employees based on how much they're using internal AI tools. Business Insider first reported on the memo in June.
"I think in 2025, it's totally fair game to say you should reflect on your AI usage, and you should reflect what did you learn about AI, did you use GitHub Copilot or Microsoft Copilot, Teams Copilot to summarize a meeting, and if not why not?" Dohmke said on the episode, which aired August 7. GitHub is Microsoft's software development platform, and GitHub Copilot is an AI coding assistant.
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He said that the memo was "more nuanced" and "talked about AI learning" in a conversation between a manager and employee. That learning process, he said, aligns with Microsoft's growth-oriented culture.
Originally sent by Julia Liuson, the president of a Microsoft division responsible for GitHub Copilot among other developer tools, the memo said that AI usage should be part of managers' "holistic reflections" on employees' performances.
"AI is now a fundamental part of how we work. Just like collaboration, data-driven thinking, and effective communication, using AI is no longer optional — it's core to every role and every level," it reads.
Dohmke said that GitHub employees have a specific non-negotiable: using GitHub. His expectation applies not just to developers but to every division, from HR to sales to legal.
"There is no world where I would allow for somebody to say, 'Well, sorry, I don't want to use GitHub.' And I think that's fair game if the employee doesn't want that, then there's tens of thousands of other tech companies out there where they can have that," he said. "But it's part of our company culture that everybody at GitHub uses GitHub."
For Dohmke, measuring AI usage doesn't mean assessing how many lines of code someone wrote with AI, since that metric is "easily gamified." Instead, he said it's about demonstrating a mindset that aligns with company culture.
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