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2h ago

Ex-Googler Warns PhDs Risk Obsolescence in Fast-Moving AI Era

Tarifi argues that rapid AI breakthroughs will render lengthy academic programs obsolete, emphasizing niche expertise and emotional skills.

Gen Z will just be "throwing away” years of their life by pursuing a PhD thanks to AI’s rapid innovation, former Google AI leader Jad Tarifi says.
Jad Tarifi, 42, joined Google in 2012 and spent nearly a decade with the search giant.

Overview

  • Jad Tarifi, who founded Google’s first generative AI team and now leads Integral AI, said pursuing a PhD in AI today risks obsolescence because model capabilities will leap ahead before students finish.
  • He advised that only those truly obsessed with research should undertake doctoral studies and suggested focusing instead on niche AI domains such as applications in biology that remain in early stages.
  • He cautioned that other lengthy professional degrees, including law and medicine, could also lose value by graduation as curricula struggle to keep pace with technological advances.
  • He recommended building social and emotional skills—such as meditation and interpersonal connection—to develop expertise that AI cannot easily replicate.
  • Despite these warnings, private-sector demand for AI PhD graduates remains strong: OpenAI’s Sam Altman says GPT-5 performs at PhD-level, tech firms are offering hefty signing bonuses, and MIT data shows 70% of AI doctoral students enter industry roles.