Tech investor Bill Gurley says workers who went through the ‘college conveyor belt’ and chased safe jobs are at high risk of AI automation

Professionals have taught for generations that succeeding in school and attending an elite university would guarantee a rewarding six-figure career. But within a matter of years, AI has disrupted the world of work, and it’s fast taking over the office roles humans were once promised. Now, venture capitalist Bill Gurley cautions workers against blindly following the career blueprint.

“This is new and fast, and it’s attacking jobs that haven’t been attacked in the past,” Gurley said recently during the On with Kara Swisher podcast. “It’s creating a lot of anxiety, but I don’t know that we can put it back in the bottle.”

The prolific tech financier, famous for his early investments in Uber and Zillow, is skeptical that the government could pass AI regulation or pull off a massive reskilling effort. So as the technology continues to automate traditionally stable and lucrative roles, like lawyers and software engineers, it’s imperative that workers actually be invested in their profession—or risk facing the chopping block. 

“The people that are most at risk are the ones that are sitting idly in the job and don’t really have a why or a purpose for it,” Gurley revealed. “A lot of the people that go through that college conveyor belt, that are chasing a safe job, that end up working as a widget or a cog in an industry they may not love—I think they are ripe for disruption.”

The Benchmark Capital general partner acknowledges it’s easier said than done, but the best path forward is to “craft your own career path” and tailor it to an individual’s distinct skills. 

For those who can’t switch sectors or become self-employed, AI can act as career “jet fuel” that can make them even better at their jobs and indispensable to their employers. 

“If it’s out of your control, I just would say understand what it’s capable of in your industry and be the most AI-aware person in your job,” Gurley advised. “You’re going to then be the last person that they want to get rid of.”

The tech investor says college has turned into a ‘pressure cooker’ 

Gurley explores the idea that chasing a career of passion is a strategic edge, and not fluffy advice, in his new book Runnin’ Down a Dream. He’s also one of several business leaders questioning the efficacy of how young professionals are trained to approach college. 

The investor has noticed a few worrying trends that may inhibit young professionals from following their true aspirations, hurting their career success. Gurley explained that kids today are “programmed from a time perspective” more than other generations. The budding talent start worrying about having a stacked résumé from a young age, and now some colleges require students to apply with a major in mind. 

These restraints don’t allow them to freely explore what jobs they’d enjoy, instead funneling them into a professional path very quickly. He believes that’s part of the reason why so many people are checked out at work—a group that’s most susceptible to disruption. 

“There seems to me to be somewhat of a problem out there in that people aren’t landing where they’re passionate about what they’re doing,” Gurley explained. “I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault, but I think we’ve turned the college matriculation process into this pressure cooker.”

Business leaders agree that AI-savvy, passionate workers will succeed 

The CEO of LinkedIn, Ryan Roslansky, echoes some of Gurley’s philosophy about career success in the AI era. Workers won’t be able to simply coast on a glitzy Ivy League degree—they need to have passion for their professions and the necessary tech skills to succeed in their careers. 

“My guess is that the future of work belongs not anymore to the people that have the fanciest degrees or went to the best colleges,” Roslansky said during a fireside chat at the platform’s San Francisco office last year. 

Instead, he predicted talent most likely to land a job and succeed are “the people who are adaptable, forward thinking, ready to learn, and ready to embrace these tools…It really kind of opens up the playing field in a way that I think we’ve never seen before.”

Fei-Fei Li, a Stanford professor and CEO of AI startup World Labs dubbed the “Godmother of AI,” says being tech-savvy on the job matters more than anything else. 

Now it’s essential for professionals to “superpower” themselves quickly with the tools, she advised. And Nvidia leader Jensen Huang agrees that AI-savvy workers undeniably have a leg up in the tough labor market. 

He said that every job will be affected by the technology immediately, and it’s on workers to ensure their future success by keeping up with the program. 

“You’re not going to lose your job to an AI, but you’re going to lose your job to someone who uses AI,” Huang said at the Milken Institute’s Global Conference in 2025. 

“I would recommend 100% of everybody take advantage of AI. Don’t be that person who ignores this technology and as a result, loses your job.”

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com