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Agentic Coworkers? Shishir Mehrotra on Reimagining Work with AI
In this episode of Creative Intelligence, host Kartik Hosanagar sits down with Shishir Mehrotra – CEO of Grammarly, founder of Coda, and former head of product and engineering at YouTube – to explore what it really means to rethink a business around AI. Shishir shares his vision for AI agents, what the future of productivity tools will look like, and how leaders can move from defensive reactions to bold transformation.
1. Playing Defense Is Not Enough — Use AI to Rewrite the Vision
After the rise of ChatGPT, many assumed Grammarly’s days were numbered. Why use a grammar assistant when you could ask a chatbot to write your emails? But as Shishir took over as CEO, he saw not a threat but an opportunity to reframe Grammarly as an AI-native productivity platform. His vision? Grammarly becomes the “AI superhighway” — a foundation that allows dozens of AI agents to work seamlessly across your tools. That includes writing assistants, sales agents, customer support bots, and more, all integrated where you already work.
“People think Grammarly is about grammar. But it’s really about bringing AI to where you work.” — Shishir Mehrotra
2. Productivity Has Moved from Collaboration to Agency
Shishir defines three eras of productivity:
- Digitization – Word, Excel, and PowerPoint replaced paper.
- Collaboration – Tools like Google Docs and Slack let people work together in real time.
- Agency – The next era, where AI agents become your virtual collaborators, handling tasks and decisions alongside you.
In this world, entry-level employees start their jobs as managers, managing a team of tireless, intelligent agents. The skill of orchestrating work, not just doing it, becomes central.
“Imagine opening a Google Doc and seeing not just 5 teammates, but 50 avatars, half of them agents, doing parts of the job with you.” — Shishir Mehrotra
3. Agents Won’t Replace You But They Will Change How You Work
Shishir describes a future where every knowledge worker has an AI “team” helping them. For example:
- A Duolingo agent that watches your reading and adapts your vocabulary lessons in real time.
- A professor agent that gives you instant writing feedback as you type, instead of weeks later.
- A productivity agent that remembers your goals and nudges you when you drift off-course.
The key human skill in this world isn’t writing code or creating decks — it’s judgment, orchestration, and taste.
“We’re moving from ‘professor in your pocket’ to ‘professor working beside you.’ That shift is coming to every field.” — Shishir Mehrotra
4. You Have 50 Job Openings; Choose Your Agents Wisely
In the age of AI, every knowledge worker effectively gains a virtual team. Instead of thinking of AI as a threat, Shishir suggests a more empowering lens: imagine you suddenly had 50 open roles to fill. Each AI tool or agent is a potential teammate, helping with communication, research, writing, or coding. The challenge isn’t whether to use AI, it’s deciding which agents to “hire” to amplify your impact.
“Every knowledge worker now has 50 open positions to fill. The question is, which AI agents will you hire to work for you?” — Shishir Mehrotra
5. For Companies, AI Transformation Starts with Mindset and Culture
Too many leaders begin their AI journey with a narrow question: “What can AI do for us?” Instead, Shishir urges leaders to rethink their company’s vision entirely, and lead with optimism, not fear.
But culture matters. Teams need support. That’s where rituals — named, repeatable, and deeply embedded team practices — come in. At Coda and Grammarly, a core ritual called Dory helps all voices be heard, ensures bias-free input, and reinforces the belief that “great ideas can come from anywhere.”
“We don’t just build products for customers — we build a product for our employees too. And that product is culture.” — Shishir Mehrotra
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