The Rise of AI

The rise of AI has been a blessing for me as an entrepreneur with a very small team. It has allowed me to accomplish so much more and to accelerate many of the mundane tasks that used to take hours.

But as a mom, it has been appalling.

Having been involved in education and having reviewed countless applications from students with unique and intriguing profiles through the Matilda Foundation, I know all too well that our current education system — or at least the kind I went through and the ones most similar to it — is not going to work anymore.

The traditional model of education — one that requires students to go through a well-rounded curriculum, excel in every subject, and compete for a place at a top university — was designed for a different world. It was built to prepare people to fit into existing systems: to become part of an organization, follow a defined path, and steadily climb the ladder until retirement.

Think about it, traditional schooling system basically consists of: standardized curricula, age-based classrooms, fixed schedules, measurements through exams and grades – all of which prepare us to fit into the large organization cultures.

Looking back at history sheds light on why this education system made sense for the past century or more. The modern education system emerged in the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution. It was designed to feed people into the (then) new economic and social structure — one that required large numbers of workers who could follow instructions, operate within rigid systems, and perform standardized tasks in factories, offices, and bureaucracies.

This education system still survived through the digital revolution. While work shifted from factory floors to offices, and from blue-collar labor to white-collar professions, the underlying structure remained largely unchanged. We were still required to be part of something larger than ourselves. Which - honestly made sense then, as none of us were capable of doing everything by ourselves.

Until we had AI revolution.

With AI, people can achieve so much more as an individual. I as an entreprenuer now run a company with one associate, and everything else I replace with AI. This could (and already had) very much change the landscape of the job market.

Larger organization will hire less people, as already seen through the massive lay off of big companies including Amazon (around 30,000 corporate roles between late 2025 and early 2026),  Microsoft, Google, Meta, and Intel each triming thoundsands of employees in 2023-2025. Even non tech companies like UPS announced plan to cut 30,000 jobs in 2026 after tens of thousands in 2025. Companies will need those performing more than pure analysis. Companies need those capable of setting direction, making critical decision, and taking responsibility for outcomes.

And of course those who hold human connection – those in roles that rely on empathy, care, and genuine human touch.

I look back at my kids each days and ask myself this question repeatedly…

Should the next generation still go through an education system designed to make them good entry-level professionals?

Perhaps to some extent, yes. But if they truly want to stand out, they’ll need a very different set of skills — ones that machines can’t easily replicate. They’ll need to be strong decision-makers, good question-framers, and creative thinkers who can go beyond the knowledge that AI has been trained on to create something new. They’ll need emotional intelligence, the ability to read the room, to inspire confidence, and to convince others of their ideas. They’ll need to synthesize insights from complex analyses prepared by AI, and translate them into meaningful strategies.

They’ll also need resilience, curiosity, and the ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn — because the pace of change will only accelerate. They will need to be creative and willing to push the boundaries of AI, using imagination to go beyond the limits of traditional knowledge that has been fed into machines, and to create something truly new.

And perhaps most importantly, they’ll need a strong sense of ethics and purpose — not only to guide how they use AI responsibly, but to help those who are left behind in this rapidly changing world.

Education will look very different.

As for me, I’ve already came to the conclusion that traditional schooling may not be the right path for my children. I don’t yet know what the new system will look like — I’m still exploring and learning — but when I do, I’ll be sure to share it.