This year, Microsoft’s announcement of nearly 10,000 layoffs sent shockwaves through the industry. It was jarring because many of those let go were not poor performers; their roles had simply ceased to exist in the face of AI’s rapid ascent.
As graduates step out into the world this June, they must navigate a professional landscape in tectonic shift.
Many jobs are being automated by AI, fueling fiercer competition. Seasoned professionals with years of experience are re-entering the job market, vying with recent graduates for an ever-shrinking pool of opportunities. How can these newcomers, with no experience and no network, possibly win?
And yet, I believe the opposite is true. This generation of graduates is incredibly fortunate to stand at the dawn of the greatest productivity revolution since the discovery of fire.
When everyone must learn new workflows from scratch, new graduates are no longer behind. In fact, they have an advantage: they are unburdened by the need to first forget old methods. They can begin directly within the context of AI, making them inherently more adaptable.
For example, to get exceptional results from AI’s “Deep Research” capabilities, a user must have the courage to challenge it. If a seasoned professional, acting out of habit, merely treats it like a search engine, they will never unlock its true potential.
In the age of AI, the concept of relying on a single, specialized skill will rapidly become obsolete. To demonstrate their value, professionals must now seek out responsibilities that are difficult for machines to replicate.
Take my own experience. I used to pride myself on my ability to write code and solve problems quickly. But when it comes to pure coding, AI now ranks among the top 200 programmers in the world.
I am thrilled that AI has surpassed my most cherished expertise, because it frees me to focus on what I truly enjoy.
The work of a programmer is to first understand a user’s needs, and then write code to meet them. In truth, I always loved the first part of that process: helping clients understand their own needs, even uncovering the needs they had never considered or couldn’t articulate. I also loved the final part: delivering a finished product that creates real value. The long, arduous process in the middle—the endless cycle of writing and revising code—is a task I am now delighted to hand over to AI.
This is why, this year, a quarter of Y Combinator’s startup teams no longer write their own code, even if they possess the technical skills. They concentrate solely on discovering needs and creating value. Not only does the quality not suffer; in many cases, the outcome is even better.
Of course, this doesn’t mean a recent graduate is suddenly on par with a seasoned designer. There are still crafts to be honed. In terms of professional function, experienced people possess a breadth of vision. This perspective allows them to connect disparate fields and draw insights across disciplines, forging an advantage all their own.
So, rather than agonizing over the experience you lack on your resume, begin to take inventory of the passions that make you unique. The issues you follow, the communities you invest in, the fields that fascinate you—these are the cornerstones of your distinct point of view.
In the age of AI, the most valuable asset isn’t what you can do, but what you care about. The more you care, the more unique your perspective becomes. This individuality allows you to collaborate with other unique people. And it is at these intersections that you will begin to perceive the pain points that no one else can.