HR The Next Leap
Bright Data: Using AI to cut headcount is “a business decision dressed up in tech language”
Limor Kidron, Chief People Officer at Bright Data, discusses the myth of the employer's market and how Israeli resilience actually accelerated company growth during the war, as part of CTech's HR: The Next Leap series.
“AI isn't the grim reaper of jobs. For us, it's a force multiplier,” says Limor Kidron, Chief People Officer at public web data extraction platform Bright Data. “And frankly, the companies using it as an excuse to cut headcount? That's not an AI story. That's a business decision dressed up in tech language.” Nonetheless, Kidron does specify that “entry-level candidates who come in with AI fluency have a real edge.”
From active and looming war threats, to AI rapidly and constantly redefining what it means to be productive, running a company in Startup Nation brings with it its own category of challenges and rewards. HR: The Next Leap takes a glimpse into the heart of Startup Nation via the HR professionals shaping its culture. We survey the executives whose jobs are more demanding and more vital than ever, as they heed the future-proofing of their workforce, while simultaneously ensuring business continuity and employee wellbeing during relentlessly unprecedented times.
Turning to the prevalent concern of employee burnout, Kidron clarifies that there are two main types to consider: situational fatigue from feeling unfulfilled in a role, which can often be fixed, and what she calls “life burnout.” She describes the latter as “the kind that combines work with war or COVID, and everything in between. That’s a different category altogether.” She continues: "I'll be direct: war aside, burnout isn't always fixable, and we're a business. We do everything we can. When that's genuinely not enough (and that’s rare), sometimes the right move is to part ways. For everyone's sake." In this case, she believes "the best cure for burnout isn't a perk. Sometimes it's a new beginning.”
You can read the entire interview below.
Company Name: Bright Data
Sector: Public Web Data and Infrastructure, AI
Founders: Ofer Vilenski and Derry Shribman
Year of Founding: 2014
Investment stage: Acquired by PEa
Investors: EMK Capital
Current number of employees: 550
Website: https://brightdata.com/
Social Media: LinkedIn
As of March 2026, the market officially shifted into an 'employer's market'. How have your screening criteria changed, and do candidates - including senior-level ones - still hold any leverage in negotiating salaries and terms?
I don't buy that assumption. At the very top end, this is still a candidate-driven market: truly remarkable, excellent people, across almost any profession, will always find demand. They get actively pursued, and command competitive offers. Companies shouldn’t hesitate.
What people used to call a "candidate's market" wasn't just about leverage for the best. It meant companies hiring almost anyone, regardless of experience or ability, just to grow headcount fast. That created inflated offers, wage distortion, and irrational competition.
The market, as it always does, corrected itself. Companies started letting people go, and who got cut first? Not the top performers.
So no, I don't think today is broadly an "employer's market." The market has simply matured and gotten more selective. It wants A-players, it hunts A-players, and it pays for A-players.
It was never really a candidate's market or an employer's market. It's always been an A-player market. The question is just whether you're one of them.
How have/are you managing operational continuity and recruitment while the economy navigates the emergency state triggered by the conflict with Iran? With the threat of escalation looming at any moment, how are you and have you been handling everything from interviews interrupted by sirens to managing teams thinned by massive, ongoing reserve duty?
This has become, painfully, a kind of routine. And there's something deeply difficult about even saying that. Because the cost is enormous, personal, and ongoing for so many people.
But life continues. And so does work.
Israel's economy has proven, time and again, to be remarkably resilient. So have its people. COVID taught us we could work from home. The post-COVID recovery came faster than anyone predicted. Geopolitics taught us something similar. After the initial shock, a new rhythm starts to emerge and take root. Teams adapt, workflows shift, and people find ways to show up, even under extraordinary pressure. People are more resilient than many realize.
But practically, we moved quickly: flexible hours, genuine support for parents, workload redistribution across teams. Being a global company helped, of course. When one part of the world is going through something acute, the rest of the world keeps running, and that continuity matters.
Most importantly, we stood firmly behind our people. No ambiguity, no hesitation. And that care came back to us in dedication and real effort.
Growth wasn't derailed. If anything, it accelerated. A testament to what people are capable of under the most challenging of circumstances.
Beyond the role of empowering employees, which roles has AI eliminated over the past year, what percentage of your workforce was reskilled to avoid being phased out, and how has this impacted entry-level hiring?
Bright Data doesn't use AI to replace people, we are the infrastructure that powers AI and our infrastructure is powered by our people. The massive data that drives the AI revolution, we're behind it. So asking us if AI eliminated roles is a bit like asking the electric company if electricity replaced their workers.
The honest answer is: no roles were eliminated because of AI. What did change is the type of talent we hire. We actively look for people who understand AI, work with AI, and think in AI, not because we're replacing anyone, but because AI created new specializations, new roles, and a new way of working that didn't exist three years ago.
Are we hiring differently? Absolutely. Entry-level candidates who come in with AI fluency have a real edge. But that's an invitation, not a threat. Every single employee can learn to work with AI tools within their own domain. And those who do don't just survive the shift, they thrive in it.
AI isn't the grim reaper of jobs. For us, it's a force multiplier. And frankly, the companies using it as an excuse to cut headcount? That's not an AI story. That's a business decision dressed up in tech language.
Against the backdrop of the unstable security and political climate, are you seeing an increase in relocation requests or 'quiet quitting' by top-tier talent moving abroad, and what is the most proactive step you are taking to retain them in Israel?
Thirteen years ago, when I joined the company, I started recruiting people, mainly engineers, across the world, regardless of location, in order to ensure fast and sustainable growth.
We were one of the few companies in Israel to take this approach so early: hiring globally even without having offices or formal operations in those countries. Even back then, we learned that this model enables faster scaling and access to very high-quality talent. Of course, measured by performance and goal attainment.
Long before COVID, this was never a challenge for us. We made sure our systems and infrastructure fully supported working from anywhere in the world, including from home.
Today, we of course also have people moved due to the war in many places all over the world, but this isn’t a new phenomenon for us.
In an era where stability has replaced flashy perks, how are you addressing the deep mental burnout of employees torn between the professional and security fronts, and what is the most critical benefit you offer today in place of the bonuses that have vanished?
Are perks ever what really make people stay? I'd argue what matters far more is whether employees feel genuinely seen, understood as humans, not headcount. A company is a living, breathing entity, just like its employees. Employees need to feel its heart and soul, that outweighs any buffet meal or tennis table.
There are several types of burnout. There’s the kind that has existed forever – burnout that develops after many years in the same place or the same role, especially when there isn’t enough change, challenge, or continuous learning. That type of burnout can often be addressed by moving someone to a different team or role, or even offering an unpaid leave of absence for a few weeks or months so they can reset and come back refreshed.
And then there’s “life burnout”. The kind that combines work with war or COVID, and everything in between. That’s a different category altogether, and that’s what we addressed, for example, by actual support: staying close, maintaining contact with employees’ families, helping where needed, whether at home or at the office.. We recently brought in on-site healthcare, during the war, we offered our reservist psychological support if they felt they needed it, and kept overall flexibility intact for anyone, whether a change of scene or sabbatical.
Most importantly, we also offer role mobility. Sometimes a burned-out employee doesn't need to leave the company, they just need to leave their current role.
But I'll be direct: war aside, burnout isn't always fixable, and we're a business. We do everything we can. When that's genuinely not enough (and that’s rare), sometimes the right move is to part ways. For everyone's sake.
The best cure for burnout isn't a perk. Sometimes it's a new beginning.
