Kevin SuraceKevin Surace is an AI pioneer, inventor, author, and human effectiveness authority helping people thrive while AI reshapes work and life.

AI Skills Are The New Hiring Filter

17 Jun 2026 · 1 min

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1:13

In this monologue, Kevin Surace argues that proficiency with generative AI tools has become a de‑facto hiring requirement. He claims that employers now expect candidates to use GenAI for tasks such as coding, writing, and content creation, and that those who refuse or lack experience with these tools will be deemed unhireable. Surace cites the low cost of AI services (e.g., $20/month) and their ability to produce high‑quality prose, suggesting that entry‑level positions are disappearing because AI can perform at that level. He emphasizes that candidates who can demonstrate expertise with specific tools like Cursor will have a hiring advantage, while traditional skill sets without AI experience are no longer sufficient.

Chapters

The new hiring rule is simple. Learn how to use this or get left behind. When you go to get the next job and say, yeah, I tried those AI things, I'll never use those, you won't be hired because they're only hiring for AI expertise. So get over yourself. You're not that good of a coder. Look, I use GenAI to write almost everything. People say, you know, at first it was a negative, right? But I just tell people I use it and here's how I use it and this is what I do. Why can't you write? I can't write as good as an English PhD that's now sitting next to me. I'm not a PhD in English. I don't write— my prose is fine. It's as good as yours, but we didn't go to school for English prose. This thing did. It knows a trillion phrases. I should use it. It costs $20 a month, right? So who would not use it? And who am I going to pay as a CEO of a business ever to write a blog post from scratch again? Never. That's why there's no entry-level jobs open anymore, right? I don't need someone coming out of college because this stuff is doing at that level. Now, if someone comes out of college and says, I spent my last year crushing it with Cursor and I'm an expert in that, and then I might hire them because I can add a person to my team who's an expert in that. Yeah. But if they come out and say, well, I know how to code in these languages. Yeah, how much have you used GenAI? Well, not a lot because we weren't allowed in university. Oh, don't want you. Not hireable.