From DEI to MEI: Why does the recruitment policy of the AI unicorn ScaleAI make Musk and Coinbase nod in agreement?

The U.S. AI startup unicorn ScaleAI provides data labeling services, with clients including the U.S. government and OpenAI. ScaleAI's CEO, Alexandr Wang, advocates a concept called "MEI," emphasizing hiring based on "Meritocracy" rather than the "Diversity" valued in Silicon Valley.

ScaleAI Adopts "Elitism" Policy, Is Silicon Valley No Longer Politically Correct?

Alexandr Wang sparked a discussion in the Silicon Valley tech industry by releasing an internal memo on Scale's recruitment policy. The content mainly discusses a shift in recruitment policy advocating for the use of the MEI concept (Merit, Excellence, Intelligence) instead of the traditional DEI concept (diversity, equity, and inclusion). Wang explains that the elite system is not contradictory to diversity, as a true elite system naturally generates diverse backgrounds and perspectives.

What is DEI? What is MEI? What are the differences between the two?

• DEI stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion; used in talent recruitment, it needs to cover different backgrounds, experiences, races, sexual orientations, and disabilities, providing diverse recruitment opportunities to ensure that applicants can compete on equal terms and include every employee, making employees feel valued and unleash their potential for the company.

• MEI stands for Merit, Excellence, Intelligence; it focuses on recruiting based on the individual's abilities, excellence, and intelligence to ensure the recruitment of top talent for the company, enhancing organizational performance and long-term development.

The MEI recruitment model can attract top talent and continuously improve the organization's competitiveness in the long run. However, under this approach, certain groups may not have the opportunity to fully showcase their abilities due to various factors. DEI ensures that people from different backgrounds have equal opportunities to compete, helping companies create a more inclusive and diverse corporate culture.

Varying Opinions Among Silicon Valley Entrepreneurs

After Alexandr Wang's tweet, many Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, including Musk and Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, expressed their agreement with Alexandr's remarks.

While the tweet garnered increasing support, more people pointed out that Alexandr's post did not take into account the subjectivity of the concept of "hiring based on merit." Some discussions suggest that Alexandr Wang's "MEI" is a mockery of "DEI."

From Civil Rights to Gender Movements, Diversity is Deeply Ingrained in Society, Is It Really So?

Personal backgrounds such as race, sexual orientation, and gender are often overlooked due to vulnerabilities. Since 2020, many companies and KOLs have been promoting DEI, allowing employees from all backgrounds to have better inclusivity in the recruitment process across various industries.

However, according to recruitment data from the tech industry in 2023, the percentage of women joining the industry dropped from 36% in 2022 to 12%, and people of color in VP and other management positions accounted for only 38% of the total workforce. From the data, it is evident that in the tech industry, the working rights and opportunities for women and people of color are significantly disadvantaged.

From the results, it appears that, in fact, the tech industry has not created greater inclusivity and diversity by promoting DEI, but has instead leaned towards MEI. In a competitive and economically challenging environment, companies also face many practical considerations, and the old version of "political correctness" may find a new balance in the balancing act between "MEI and DEI."