AI is increasing productivity, opening new career paths, and challenging the status quo.
Technology ultimately changes everything and has always shaped the way we work. The difference today is the speed with which that change unfolds. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are accelerating the world of work at a speed that most organizations and individuals currently struggle to grasp. While headlines often focus on the threat of role extinction and concerns that younger generations will struggle to enter the labor market, less attention is paid to the great opportunities for advancement.
I’ve been in business for 50 years, and a little more than half of that time has been spent in the analog world. I remember the introduction of email over 20 years ago. For the most part, companies that were deeply skeptical and held on to the old and familiar did not survive this transition. Progress continued without them.
Today, we are at a similar tipping point. AI is already increasing productivity, opening up entirely new career paths, and challenging the status quo.
AI is not the end of work, it’s the beginning of better work
Increasingly, younger employees are teaching older colleagues how to use the tools that are redefining modern work. Our recent research shows that Gen Z employees are playing a pivotal role in driving AI adoption across the workplace, with nearly two-thirds of younger employees actively helping their older colleagues learn and use AI tools, from hands-on coaching to practical tips for incorporating AI into daily workflows. This reverse mentoring results in substantial increases in productivity and collaboration.
In fact, Hong Kong employees are adopting these tools faster than many of their global peers. According to PwC’s 2025 Hong Kong Workers’ Hopes and Fears Survey, 61% of Hong Kong workers are already using AI at work, compared to the global average of 54%. Of these users, 77% reported increased productivity and 75% said AI helped improve the quality of their work, proving that the revolution is already paying off.
But despite this progress, much of the conversation is still dominated by anxiety. A recent World Economic Forum survey found that more than half of business executives expect their jobs to be replaced by AI, raising concerns that entry-level jobs will be automated and young people will lose the foothold they need to advance to senior roles. While that reality may be unsettling to some, we live in a world where AI is creating a wealth of new roles and opportunities.
AI-enhanced training is accelerating learning in ways never seen before, whether in the classroom, university, or workplace, allowing young people to move up the learning curve much faster than previous generations. Hong Kong is also seeing a shift in employer preferences, with research showing a 6% increase in the number of job openings for roles that require AI-enhanced human expertise. This shows that the market is looking for people who can use AI as co-pilots, not just people who use it for repetitive tasks.
As a result, chairs may be moved and employment may decline slightly, but the reality is that employment will change. Young people will need to be much more focused on what their entry point will be if they are entering the job market in, say, one year, two years, or three years, or five years.
Moore’s Law and Exponential Progress
To understand what’s happening now, it’s worth looking back. In the early 1970s, Intel released the world’s first commercial microprocessor, the 4004. Shortly thereafter, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore noticed something strange. It seems like the number of transistors on a chip is doubling every two years or so. Although Moore did not intend this to be a marketing slogan, he was capturing something profound: progress is exponential rather than linear.
This observation became known as Moore’s Law. The message was simple and powerful. Waiting two years won’t get you a small upgrade. You’ll get a dramatic jump.
speed of business
This is the mistake we are making today with AI. We treat it like a little efficiency tool, but in reality it’s part of an exponential curve, and this is the biggest change I’ve seen since 1989. Exponential change not only tweaks employment, but also changes the speed of business itself.
We’ve seen this before. With the advent of email, I remember respectable companies claiming they would never adopt email. they didn’t trust it. They thought, the postal service has been working for centuries, so why change? But email was progressing. And with the proper use of email, smartphones and the Internet, business did not slow down, but significantly sped up.
AI will do the same. The assumption that many people have is that with fewer people, business will continue to move at the same pace. That’s wrong. Even when individuals can do 10 or 20 times more work in a day, organizations are not standing still. They expand possibilities. Yes, jobs will change. The numbers may be lower in certain categories, and the entry point into the workforce will be different. Young people will need to be more intentional about where and how they start their careers.
But rather than shrinking economic activity, past technological changes have reshaped it. People needed to develop new skills to demonstrate their worth, and those who adapted acted faster than everyone else.
As a city notorious for its “hustle culture,” 76% of Hong Kong leaders already expect to leverage “digital labor” or AI agents to free up their workforce in the next 12 to 18 months. It is important for businesses to realize that AI is not just an upgrade, but a solution to cities’ chronic overwork culture through a new performance equation.
In fact, AI is also a much better teacher than the old model of learning by osmosis. AI-powered training allows people to climb the learning curve faster than ever before, increasingly starting in the classroom long before landing their first job. By removing drudgery and creating significant efficiencies, AI enables humans to do what they do best: think creatively, solve problems, and come up with new ideas.
In the world of AI, those who act spontaneously will win.
One of the qualities I look for in future talent is the ability to use AI effectively and recognize how this can enhance business potential. Those who already have a subscription to an AI tool and are actively learning how to take advantage of it are at an advantage. These bring new skills, energy and innovation to rapidly expanding businesses, driving further productivity and growth. The market value of these skills in Hong Kong is undeniable. Currently, workers with AI skills earn up to a 56% wage premium over their non-AI colleagues.
Young people need to look ahead and ask themselves questions. “Where can I get the best career experience in this new world?” “Do I have the skills that will be valued by future companies?” In the past, ambitious employees would learn to code at night or earn additional qualifications on the side. That mindset is more important now than ever. Don’t rely solely on school or university for your preparation. Find AI Club. Join the community. Teach yourself the tools to transform your industry. Take responsibility for your own development.
This proactive approach is a necessary bridge to the institutional support now emerging across the city. In addition to designating AI as a pillar industry in the 2025 policy speech and launching a funding program for AI to power learning and education, the latest 2026 budget includes $50 million to invite public authorities to AI application courses aimed at young people and allocates $2 billion to develop school-based AI education programs and training. This means that the next generation has the resources they need to develop AI literacy.
pave the way forward
All major technological changes in history follow the same pattern. While many stick to what they know, a smaller group adapts early and reaps the benefits. Speed is what changes this moment. The velocity of business is increasing faster than at any point in recent history.
AI, like Intel’s early chips, is the foundational technology that compounds and reshapes everything built on top of it. It is not a distant possibility or a temporary trend. It is already a driver of scale and competitiveness.
Those who want to engage, learn, and experiment with AI will find that their opportunities are growing, not shrinking. History is clear on this. In times of exponential change, those who act first stand to gain the most.
