Getting a foot in the door is getting harder for fresh graduates, and according to Clara Shih, artificial intelligence is a big reason why. The former Meta and Salesforce executive said entry-level hiring conditions are now the toughest seen in nearly four decades, with AI reshaping what employers expect from new hires.
Shih, who has spent nearly two decades working in AI, said the shift became clear to her after observing AI agents at Meta perform at levels comparable to, and sometimes better than, top employees across multiple tasks.
“In that moment I knew that nothing would ever be the same,” she told Fortune, adding that the experience fundamentally changed how she viewed the future of work.
Around the same time, she said she was hearing from students, including Ivy League graduates, who were struggling to secure jobs. She described the situation as “practically impossible” for many trying to enter the workforce.
Why Gen Z is struggling
Shih said the core challenge is simple: every job now requires some level of AI capability. As companies adopt AI tools rapidly, traditional entry-level roles are shrinking while expectations for technical fluency are rising.
She pointed to a combination of factors, including fewer openings at the entry level and concerns about AI-driven job displacement, which are pushing many young job seekers to rethink career paths. Some are exploring alternatives such as gig work, entrepreneurship, or trade-based careers.
At the same time, sentiment toward AI is shifting. A survey by Gallup found that excitement among Gen Z has dropped sharply over the past year, while anger has increased. Anxiety levels, however, have remained high.
Training Gen Z for an AI-first workforce
In response, Shih has launched the New Work Foundation, a non-profit aimed at preparing young professionals for an AI-driven job market. The organisation operates a consumer-facing platform called Dear CC, which offers tools designed to help users navigate career decisions.
One of these tools, Field Report, provides insights into job markets and AI risks across professions. For instance, it shows that while there are over 31,500 legal roles available in the United States with relatively low competition, the likelihood of automation in that field remains high.
Another tool, JobClaw, uses an AI agent to match job seekers with roles based on their interests and strengths. It removes the need for a résumé and instead relies on a short intake form about the user’s goals and preferences.
Shih said the idea behind these tools is to equip job seekers with the same technology that is disrupting hiring. “If you want to find a job and if you want to keep your job, you need to learn how to get really good at using AI agents,” she told Fortune.
AI divide among business leaders
Views on AI’s impact on jobs remain mixed. Dario Amodei of Anthropic has suggested that AI could disrupt a large share of white-collar roles. Meanwhile, Jensen Huang of Nvidia has indicated that AI could work alongside humans and even support more hiring.
Despite differing outlooks, Shih maintains that adapting to AI is no longer optional. She also said those who are sceptical of the technology still have an important role to play. “The people who have moral objections to AI are actually the people that I want involved, making sure that we steer these systems in the right direction,” she told Fortune.