AI start-ups are snubbing entry-level talent in favor of Silicon Valley men with top degrees, research shows

Tech companies like Meta and Google have built a reputation for snatching up talent before they’re out of college, and sticking them into six-figure roles. But now, the incoming wave of new AI start-ups are turning away young, digital native workers in favor of their veteran colleagues. 

According to researchers at Harvard Business School and non-profit business school INSEAD, AI-native startups are building smaller and flatter teams with fewer entry-level workers than their non-AI-enabled peers.

It found that firms that build AI-enabled products and processes employ around 15% fewer entry-level workers than conventional start-ups. 

And there’s a certain archetype for who is most likely to fill up their office cubicles: “They are geographically concentrated in Silicon Valley, and employ workforces that are more ma...