Inside Klarna's AI Strategy: CEO Clones and Business Growth

It is not every day that a Chief Executive sends an AI-powered clone to deliver quarterly financial results, but that is the approach Klarna’s CEO, Sebastian Siemiatkowski, took.

The finance company’s first-quarter highlights for 2025 were delivered not by the man himself but by a hyper-realistic AI avatar in a short video posted to YouTube.

The avatar opens the video by admitting the ruse, stating: “It’s me, or rather my AI avatar, here to share Klarna’s Q1 2025 highlights.”

The clone then proceeds to detail a record-breaking period for Klarna, which it says has now hit 100 million active consumers, marking its most rapid growth in two years.

In addition, Klarna has reportedly delivered its fourth consecutive profitable quarter with revenue rising 15% year-on-year. According to Klarna, its US business was a major contributor, accounting for 33% of that growth.

AI as a tool for business growth

The AI avatar attributes much of this success to the integration of artificial intelligence across Klarna.

The fintech company, which is headquartered in Stockholm, has embedded the technology within its global teams to enhance growth and create efficiencies.

The avatar explains: “AI is helping us work faster, scale faster and deliver more value. From customer support and marketing to insights and product development, we’re now on track to hit US$1m per employee – very cool.”

It concludes by stating: “One hundred million consumers, profit and growth. AI is the engine behind it all.”

Under Sebastian’s leadership, Klarna has undergone a major transformation, streamlining its workforce by approximately 40% since 2022.

During the same period, the proportion of technology-focused employees has risen from 36% to 52% in the first quarter of 2025.

With 96% of employees now reportedly using AI daily, Klarna has seen a 152% increase in revenue per employee since the first quarter of 2023.

This technology is also being applied in customer-facing roles, where it has helped lower costs per transaction by 40% since Q1 2023, while customer satisfaction levels have been maintained.

Leadership perspective on AI and talent

Sebastian has been open about his views on the capabilities and challenges presented by AI.

In an interview with Bloomberg in December 2024, he stated that “AI can already do all of the jobs that we as humans do”.

He later expanded on this remark in a post on the social media platform X, acknowledging the statement had “caused quite a stir”.

Sebastian clarified his position, explaining: “So to me AI is capable of doing all our jobs, my own included. Because our work is simply reasoning combined with knowledge/experience. And the most critical breakthrough, reasoning, is behind us. Exactly how long it will take for the world to figure this out, who knows for sure? But I think we can all agree it is not in the 100s of years…”

Vibe coding and the future of work

The fintech leader is also a proponent of a process known as vibe coding, which involves using AI as a coding assistant more informally and fluidly.

It is a method, he says, he has used for 20 years, but one that has accelerated. This added pace means that tasks that might have previously required long meetings with technology teams can now be handled in minutes from his desk.

Sebastian told the Sourcery podcast: “Rather than disrupting my poor engineers and product people with what is half good ideas and half bad ideas, now I test it myself”.

What this means for the future of talent is a topic of discussion.

In a Bloomberg interview, the Klarna CEO issued a warning that AI could eliminate numerous knowledge-based jobs, including those in the banking and finance sectors.

He told Bloomberg Television: “I feel a lot of my tech bros are being slightly, you know, not to the point on this topic. I think there is a massive change coming to knowledge work. And it’s not just in banking, it’s in society at large. Society will have to figure out what we are going to do because, yes, new jobs will be created, but in the short term, that doesn’t help the Brussels translator. He’s not going to become a YouTube influencer tomorrow.”