It's time to address the looming crisis in entry-level work (www.technologyreview.com)

Recent studies, including a working paper from the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, highlight a concerning trend in entry-level employment amidst the rise of generative AI. Workers aged 22 to 25 in high AI-exposure fields, such as software development and customer service, experienced a substantial 16% drop in employment rates, suggesting that firms are increasingly relying on AI to perform tasks traditionally held by junior staff. Meanwhile, the employment of more experienced workers in the same sectors remained stable, indicating that early-career positions are particularly vulnerable to AI substitution. This shift underscores the urgent need for educational institutions and businesses to adapt their training and hiring strategies. As AI continues to reshape job roles, developing essential skills such as AI literacy and the ability to supervise AI outputs becomes paramount. Students should not only learn to utilize AI tools but also grasp how to blend their domain expertise with AI capabilities. With the labor market for recent graduates softening—evidenced by rising unemployment and underemployment rates—there is a pressing call for targeted support measures, such as tax incentives for hiring early-career workers, to ensure that today's youth can successfully transition into a future workforce augmented by AI.