Person

Andy Yen

2
Quotes
1
Show

What They Said

“I think the users were allergic to big tech and not actually to AI. They just associated AI with big tech, which is actually kind of a fair and reasonable thing to do.” — Andy Yen, Uncanny Valley | WIRED

Andy Yen describes the backlash Proton got when it first shipped AI features, and how the same users who complained later complained that the AI wasn't good enough. His read: privacy-minded users don't actually object to AI itself, just to the companies that have historically abused their data.

Uncanny Valley | WIRED · 2026-08-18 Context → Listen →
“AI is surveillance, the internet is surveillance, and the internet as an invention was great for many things, but it was one of the worst inventions that could have been made from a privacy standpoint.” — Andy Yen, Uncanny Valley | WIRED

Andy Yen runs Proton, an encrypted-email and privacy company that has also started shipping its own AI features. Explaining why he thinks privacy companies can't just sit AI out, he puts AI in the same bucket as the internet itself: transformative, and terrible for privacy.

Uncanny Valley | WIRED · 2026-08-18 Context → Listen →

Where They Turn Up

Uncanny Valley | WIRED 2