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Google AI veteran warns students: Don't chase PhDs for the hype
Jad Tarifi, who founded Google's first generative AI team, is advising young people to "think twice" before pursuing a PhD to ride the AI wave.
Tarifi, who holds a PhD in AI himself, warned that the field is moving so fast that what a student learns in a five-year doctoral program could be obsolete by the time they graduate.
While tech giants like Meta, OpenAI, and Google are showering top AI talent with multimillion-dollar offers, one of the field's pioneers is sounding a note of caution. Jad Tarifi, who founded Google's first generative AI team, is advising young people to "think twice" before pursuing a PhD to ride the AI wave.
Tarifi, who holds a PhD in AI himself, warned that the field is moving so fast that what a student learns in a five-year doctoral program could be obsolete by the time they graduate.
"AI itself is going to be gone by the time you finish a PhD," Tarifi said, suggesting that many of today's problems, like applying AI to robotics, will be solved within that timeframe. He encouraged students to pursue "niche" areas like AI for biology or, if they're unsure, to not do a PhD at all. "You will move much faster. You’ll learn a lot more. You’ll be more adaptive to how things are changed," he added.
Tarifi's warning extends beyond just AI. He suggests that long-term degrees in fields like law and medicine are also at risk. He argues that the knowledge gained from eight years of advanced schooling can become quickly outdated and is often based on memorization, which is a skill that AI excels at.
Instead of focusing on hard degrees, Tarifi suggests that people should develop skills that AI can't replicate: empathy and emotional intelligence. He believes that the ability to effectively use AI tools, what he calls "emotional attunement" and "good taste," will be far more valuable than a traditional scientific education.
He's not alone in this thinking. Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis has also said that jobs requiring human empathy, like nursing and certain aspects of medicine, are unlikely to be replaced by AI systems.
Tarifi's ultimate advice is to "work on is more internal. Meditate. Socialize with your friends. Get to know yourself emotionally."
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