AI and the Future of Work: A Letter to New Grads

As Chief Technology Officer at Henry Schein One, I often speak about how AI is transforming the dental industry, from smarter workflows to more personalized patient experiences.

But lately, as the father of a soon-to-be computer science graduate, my thoughts have shifted to the challenges younger generations are facing as they enter this new world of work.

Let's address the elephant in the room: the job market is tough for new grads, and AI is playing a part in that reality.

Yet this isn't the first time technology has reshaped the workforce. History is full of similar transitions. When cars replaced horses in the early 1900s, many believed farmers who relied on growing hay would lose their livelihoods. Instead, they adapted by pivoting to new crops like potatoes, beets, and alfalfa.

Farmers didn't vanish; they evolved.

Now, comparing farmers to software engineers isn't exactly apples to apples but the lesson holds. Each new wave of innovation has sparked the same fears, and each time, the workforce has evolved.

I can easily think of multiple examples over the past 30 years where we had similar fears for the technology industry:

• When low-code and no-code platforms emerged in the late '90s, many predicted the end of software engineering.
• When CRM systems became mainstream, people said we'd need fewer developers.
• When early AI tools like autocomplete appeared, some thought manual coders would disappear.
• When Web 2.0 reshaped the internet, the same narrative returned.
• When cloud platforms like AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure took off, it seemed like infrastructure engineers might become obsolete.

New professionals now face similar crossroads, and the solution remains the same as it did 100 years ago when people moved from buggies to cars: adapt and innovate.

The reality is: we still need people to build, guide, and maintain these tools. We need engineers to pave the way for new innovation and employees who can do the higher-level work of designing, directing, and improving the systems.

AI isn't meant to replace you. It will redefine the roles available and the skills required. Where you once envisioned yourself as a software engineer, you may now find yourself managing a team of AI agents that write the code for the solutions you design.

You'll still need to know how to program. You'll still take Computer Science 101 to learn your loops and logic. But you likely won't spend your days writing every line of code. Instead, you'll be a force multiplier amplifying what you can achieve through the intelligent tools at your disposal.

Programmers aren't going extinct. They're becoming far more effective.

And this isn't just a shift for engineers. It's a transformation touching nearly every field. In healthcare, AI is helping clinicians diagnose faster and personalize care, allowing them to focus on patient relationships rather than repetitive tasks. In marketing, it's automating data analysis and campaign optimization, freeing professionals to focus on strategy and creativity. In the legal field, it's streamlining document review and research, enabling lawyers to spend more time on complex judgment calls.

Across industries, AI isn't taking jobs. It's reshaping them, moving people away from repetitive work and toward higher-value, more human responsibilities. For those ready to learn and adapt, this shift is one of the greatest career opportunities in a generation.

When we face moments of disruption like this, it's natural to feel uncertain. But here's the truth: if you want to succeed, you can't fear change. You need to harness it.

You're standing at a crossroads, and there are two ways forward:

You can fear AI, assume it will take your job, and let that fear define your choices.

You can embrace AI, develop the skills needed to work with the technology, and enter the workforce with an advantage the generations before you didn't have.

Whether you're an entry-level coder or a seasoned engineer, success in this new era belongs to the learner, the one willing to evolve alongside the technology.

As someone from the generation that came before, I want you to win. We all do. We want the next wave of engineers to thrive, to build meaningful careers, and to shape the future with purpose and creativity.

And if you remember nothing else from this, remember this: Technology should never drive you. You should drive technology.