Sam Altman says Gen Z should embrace new careers in AI era

Summarised from 3 outlets · 6 reports · Updated 31 Oct, 11:52 · Archive

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has told young workers entering the workforce to pursue unconventional careers rather than repeating what succeeded five years ago.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has told young people entering the workforce to pursue new career paths rather than following traditional routes, arguing that disruption from artificial intelligence presents an opportunity. Speaking at Stanford's Graduate School of Business, Altman said many MBA students want to replicate what worked five years ago, when they should instead embrace untested ideas. 'I think this is a great time to go do the new thing,' he said. He noted that AI will soon handle tasks currently done by humans 'better, cheaper, and faster', and entirely differently, making it essential for new workers to differentiate themselves.

Altman has also faced criticism over OpenAI's approach to releasing mathematical breakthroughs. Speaking on the Cheeky Pint podcast, he acknowledged that the company has published many results rapidly, leaving mathematicians struggling to keep up. 'I do have empathy for the method,' he said, but argued that 'humanity deserves fundamental knowledge, and we should not be sitting on a major fundamental science discovery'. Mathematicians have criticised OpenAI for inadequate attribution and poor verification of its findings.

When asked if OpenAI had more unpublished discoveries, Altman replied 'We do. Of course.' TechRadar reports that the company recently published 722 manuscripts on 400 problems on GitHub, swamping the scientific community. Thore Husfeldt of the IT University of Copenhagen said the impact of having important work suddenly undercut by a machine is 'psychologically taxing for many people'.

Altman also drew criticism for comments about computer memory allocation. On the Cheeky Pint podcast, he argued it is 'quite terrible' that people use personal computers to store RAM when that limited supply could be better utilised in data centres. He noted that personal computers typically use their RAM only about five per cent of the time, whereas data centres maximise utilisation. 'You want maximum utilization in the cloud if you're trying to deal with this very supply constrained environment,' he said.

Consumers have responded negatively to Altman's remarks about RAM. The New York Post reports that online commenters accused him of suggesting computer memory belongs in AI data centres rather than in consumers' hands. One commenter wrote: 'The guy really went and basically openly said it's actually quite terrible that normal people have Ram in their computers because from my perspective it should all belong to me.' Critics seized on the remarks as an argument that OpenAI should have greater access to the world's memory supply.

How it is being reported

• Sam Altman says it's 'quite terrible' that you're using RAM in your PCOpenAI CEO Sam Altman says the limited amounts of RAM available could be better allocated around the world.TechRadar · 31 Oct, 11:30
• Bay Area tech exec says it’s ‘terrible’ for people to own key piece of PC hardwareOpenAI boss Sam Altman is getting roasted online after suggesting it’s “quite terrible” that ordinary people are using up the world’s limited supply of computer memory instead of putting it to better use in the cloud. The Bay Area tech billionaire made the eyebrow-raising remarks during a recent interview with Stripe President John Collison on...New York Post · 31 Oct, 03:11
• Sam Altman says OpenAI won't slow its math and science paper barrageOpenAI’s scientific breakthroughs are ‘really cool and terrible at the same time,’ scientists say.TechRadar · 31 Oct, 01:00
• Sam Altman says it’s better for RAM to be in a data center than on your deskAsked about supply chain shortages, like the ongoing RAM shortage, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in an interview that it's "terrible" to have RAM in personal PCs instead of data centers. During his appearance on the Cheeky Pint podcast, where he also commented on AI's impact on math, Altman said: "A lot of people want […]The Verge · 30 Oct, 20:48
• Sam Altman sympathizes with mathematicians, but says OpenAI’s math onslaught won’t stopAfter months of bombarding mathematicians with a relentless stream of AI-generated results, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says he sympathizes with researchers struggling to make sense of it all. But he has no intention of stopping - and hints there could be much more to come from the company's stockpile of discoveries. "I think, on net, […]The Verge · 30 Oct, 13:01
• 'I think this is a great time to go do the new thing': OpenAI CEO Sam Altman thinks Gen Z entering the workforce should throw out the rulebook and do their own thingAltman says Gen Z need to try something different to stand out in an AI-dominated workforce.TechRadar · 29 Oct, 17:05

In this story: Sam Altman · OpenAI · Stanford · Thore Husfeldt · IT University of Copenhagen

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