I spent last week at Microsoft HQ for our annual MVP and Regional Directors summit. Most of our discussions there are confidential. However, I can share the general sentiment shared by many of us at the event. Our conversations all reinforced what I’ve been saying publicly about AI for several years now, but things are happening faster than even I expected.
The world is changing fast, and it’s about to get much faster. You need to learn to adapt to this new pace of change — it’s not going away. However, the pace of change isn’t evenly distributed. Those of us in the tech industry are seeing firsthand what a wave of AI automation looks like as it tears through an entire industry. We are the canaries in the coal mine. However, this pace of change will hit everyone soon. This year may be your last year to prepare for what’s rapidly approaching.
Your job is about to change, whether you are prepared or not. If you work in front of a computer all day, AI can currently perform roughly 83% of all of the tasks you do today, 11x faster, and 100x cheaper. These capabilities are doubling roughly every 4 months. If your work involves mostly computers, be prepared to become a builder or manager on a team of software agents in the very near future. If your work involves mostly physical labor, you still have a few years before general-purpose humanoid robots can automate most of your daily tasks. The deployment will be slower — but it’s still coming soon.
There is a huge demand for anyone who can build, manage, and collaborate with AI agents. If you aren’t using any AI tools yet, start using an AI chatbot like ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, etc. If you’re not using AI agents, start using Claude Code, Claude Cowork, Codex CLI, OpenClaw, etc. If you’re not already managing a team of agents yet, start using multiple collaborative agents, Paperclip AI, Crew AI, etc. You need to start today.
Our existing mental models of the world are breaking. Things that were true a few months ago are no longer true. Things that weren’t possible a few months ago are now possible. The way I work, the way I learn, my views on intelligence, identity, economics, society, etc., are all changing rapidly as AI breaks the “old” rules of how the world used to work. While it’s important to be skeptical of new information, new technology, and new worldviews, it’s equally important to be open-minded right now.
We need to help each other out. In the long run, I’m very optimistic about AI’s potential to transform our world for the better. However, in the short term (i.e., the next 1-10 years), I think things will be very difficult for many people. The next wave of AI is going to sweep across the planet, destroying the old world we’ve known our entire lives and creating a new world that will be very foreign to us all. This transition is going to be very difficult. Some people will be riding on top of the wave, and others will get rolled underneath it. We won’t be able to help everyone equally, but we can lift up those around us who are willing to put in the work to minimize the negative short-term impacts of this technology revolution.
Ultimately, we need to ensure that the goals and values of humanity and AI remain aligned in this decade and beyond.