Coinbase launches AI-powered Coach to give employees daily performance feedback

Coinbase has rolled out a beta of an internal AI service called Coinbase Coach, which aggregates data from Google Docs, meeting logs, Github commits and Slack chats to deliver individualized feedback to employees who choose to participate. The feedback is private, not used for performance evaluations, and arrives weekly, focusing on communication clarity and strategic focus. CTO Rob Witoff reports that the AI offers some of the most direct advice he has received, helping him avoid micromanagement and improve his own effectiveness.

CEO Brian Armstrong has experimented with the tool by asking it to reverse-prompt suggestions based on company data, such as identifying team disagreements or assessing his time allocation. The rollout follows a restructuring that saw about 700 staff members laid off and a shift toward smaller, multi-role teams without dedicated managers.