Automating entry-level jobs could backfire, MIT warns
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES — Replacing entry-level workers with artificial intelligence (AI) too quickly risks destroying the apprenticeship ladder that produces the next generation of skilled professionals, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researcher has warned.
According to Preston Fore, writing for Fortune, the warning comes as entry-level job postings on Handshake are down 2% year-over-year and 12% below pre-pandemic levels.
The apprenticeship ladder at risk
Andrew McAfee, research scientist and co-lead of the Initiative on the Digital Economy at MIT and cofounder of Workhelix, warned that companies racing to automate beginner tasks may be hollowing out their own talent pipelines. “How else are people going to learn to do the job except via on-the-job learning and training apprenticeship?” he said.
The concern is backed by labor market data showing mounting pressure on new graduates. The New York Federal Reserve reports a 5.6% unemployment rate among college graduates aged 22 to 27, and a Monster survey found that 89% of 2026 graduates are concerned AI will replace entry-level roles — up from 64% in 2025.
McAfee warned that premature automation of entry-level work means companies are “probably sacrificing future opportunities to learn and the skilled people of the future.”
Tech giants push back with hiring commitments
“You are right they said AI would kill entry-level jobs. Meanwhile these grads and interns are building it,” said Marc Benioff, chief executive officer (CEO) of Salesforce (salesforce.com).
IBM (ibm.com) announced it is tripling its entry-level hires, while Amazon is maintaining 11,000 software engineering internships; Salesforce plans to add 1,000 graduates to its workforce this year.
76% of Generation Z already use standalone AI tools in their work, according to a November 2025 Deloitte survey.
The split between companies cutting junior roles and those doubling down on early-career hiring reflects competing theories on how AI reshapes workforce development.
For business process outsourcing (BPO) providers, McAfee’s apprenticeship argument reinforces a longstanding model: entry-level offshore roles have always served as structured talent development pipelines, not just cost-reduction levers.
As companies in the United States debate whether to automate beginner tasks, BPO firms that preserve learning-on-the-job pathways are positioned to cultivate the deep functional expertise clients will need downstream.
The talent pipeline question is no longer just a Generation Z concern — for BPO providers, it is becoming a core workforce competency argument.
