Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, has issued a strong call to today’s teenagers—especially Gen Alpha—to dive deeply into AI now or risk being left behind in a fast-changing world. Leading the team behind Google’s cutting-edge AI projects like Gemini, and pushing toward artificial general intelligence (AGI), Hassabis has a front-row view of how transformative AI is becoming.
At the recent Google I/O developer conference, Hassabis estimated that AGI—AI capable of human-level reasoning—is likely less than a decade away. On the "Hard Fork" podcast, he highlighted generative AI as the defining technology for Gen Alpha, just like the internet shaped millennials and smartphones defined Gen Z.
His advice is clear: don’t wait. Learn how AI tools work, understand their capabilities, and get comfortable experimenting with them early. Hassabis encourages young people to become “ninjas” in new technologies and to embrace a mindset focused on “learning how to learn.” This mindset, he says, is essential to navigate the rapid shifts AI will bring over the next 5 to 10 years, where many jobs will be disrupted but new, more valuable roles will also emerge.
While technical STEM skills like coding remain critical, Hassabis stresses that broader “meta skills” such as creativity, adaptability, and resilience will be just as important—if not more so. These qualities foster flexibility and cognitive agility that AI will struggle to replicate, making them durable assets in a world of constant change.
Hassabis also urges students to use their university years not just to absorb formal knowledge but to experiment actively with AI tools outside the curriculum, staying ahead of rapid technological developments. The ability to keep up with evolving AI technology and understand oneself better as a learner, he believes, will be a vital differentiator for the next generation entering the workforce.
In essence, Hassabis’s message is that AI isn’t some distant future—it’s here now and accelerating. Those who embrace it early and develop both technical expertise and adaptable mindsets will be best positioned to thrive in the coming AI-driven era.
