We Added a $250 AI Tools Stipend for the Buffer Team: Here’s Why

At Buffer, we are always looking for ways to help our team work more effectively and creatively. Our latest investment in productivity is a company-wide AI Tools Stipend of $250 per teammate per year.

This initiative reinforces our ongoing commitment to supporting innovation while giving our teammates the autonomy to choose tools that best fit their individual workflows. Here's why we're introducing this stipend and how we expect it to impact our work.

The evolution of AI in our workflows

Over the past year, we've seen AI tools rapidly transform how many of us work. What started as occasional experimentation with tools like ChatGPT has evolved into more regular integration of AI assistants in various aspects of our workflow — from drafting content and generating ideas to debugging code and analyzing data.

Late last year, our Engineering Managers began exploring the idea of offering a stipend specifically for Engineers to experiment with productivity-boosting AI software. We noticed some inconsistencies in reimbursement requests for these tools and aligned on providing structured support for this exploration.

The positive impact on our engineering team made it clear that AI tools could benefit everyone at Buffer, regardless of their role. That's why we've decided to extend this stipend to all teammates.

Why we're introducing an AI tools stipend

The pace of AI tool development has accelerated dramatically, and we want to empower our team to experiment and find what works best for their specific needs.

There are a few key reasons behind this decision:

1. Autonomy and flexibility: Different roles benefit from different AI tools, and we want teammates to have the freedom to choose what works for them rather than prescribing a one-size-fits-all solution.
2. Reducing friction: By providing a dedicated stipend, we remove financial barriers to trying new tools that might significantly improve productivity.
3. Learning together: As we all explore different AI tools, we can share insights and recommendations, collectively building our understanding of how these technologies can best support our work.
4. Staying ahead of the curve: AI technology is evolving rapidly, and we want to ensure our team has access to cutting-edge tools that help us continue delivering exceptional service to our customers.

How our AI stipend works

We've allocated $250 per teammate per year for AI tools. With our current team size of 71 people, this represents a potential additional operating expense of up to $17,750 annually.

The stipend offers flexibility, allowing teammates to maintain a yearly subscription to one primary tool, access others occasionally for specific projects, or mix and match several tools throughout the year.

We've designed the AI Tools Stipend to be straightforward and flexible:

• Eligibility: All Buffer teammates are eligible to use the full $250 stipend annually.
• Covered tools: The stipend covers AI-powered tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Midjourney, Cursor, Cody, Spiral, Raycast, and similar tools that enhance productivity and creativity.
• Subscription recommendation: We suggest opting for monthly subscriptions rather than annual commitments to maintain flexibility in trying different tools.
• Free alternatives: Many AI tools offer free versions, so we recommend exploring those first before committing to a paid plan. Additionally, Gemini Advanced is already available through our Google Workspace.
• Knowledge sharing: In the spirit of transparency, teammates who use the stipend are encouraged to share the tool they're exploring in our #culture-ai Slack channel so we can all learn together.

Learning together: building an AI knowledge base

One of the most exciting aspects of this program is the opportunity to collectively discover and share best practices for using AI tools. By encouraging discussion in our #culture-ai Slack channel, we hope to:

• Create a repository of real-world use cases specific to Buffer's work
• Help teammates discover tools that might benefit their particular workflow
• Identify patterns in how different teams are leveraging AI

We already have some early success stories:

• Content Team: Experimenting with AI for research and ideation while maintaining our unique voice. The stipend is already having an impact here as our content writer, Tami, wrote an article detailing an experiment with five AI chatbots and how they might fit into creators’ workflows.
• Engineering Team: Boosting productivity through AI-assisted coding.
• Customer Advocacy Team: Exploring ways to enhance customer interactions with AI support.

Through these shared experiences, we'll continue to refine our understanding of how AI can best support our work at Buffer.

Over to you

This stipend is just one part of our broader approach to thoughtfully integrating AI into our work at Buffer. We see AI tools as assistants that can handle routine tasks and provide creative inspiration, freeing up our human team to focus on the work that requires genuine human connection, creativity, and strategic thinking.

We’d love to hear your thoughts:

• Do you have questions about how we're approaching AI adoption at Buffer?
• Are you using AI tools in your work? Which ones have you found most valuable?

As always, we're learning as we go — we believe in the potential of AI to enhance our work while still keeping human creativity, connection, and judgment at the center of what we do.

Read more about AI at Buffer