Every third quarter of the year, our team begins discussing recruitment for the organisation or project, whether for documentation work, coordination, or even operational roles. Last year, in particular, was a period in which we recruited a significant number of employees into the organisation due to multiple projects that needed to be executed according to the requirements of both clients and funding sources. What was interesting was that this round of discussion focused heavily on adaptability within rapidly changing AI-augmented environments. Younger candidates with limited work experience but strong capabilities in utilising AI for work, therefore, became the group we increasingly wanted more of than others.
This conversation has gradually become more common. Candidates are now often asked simple questions such as, “Can you write AI prompts?” or “Are you familiar with AI automation?” as some of the first questions in interviews. Such questions were relatively uncommon five years ago. In fact, relying too much on tools might even have been viewed negatively, as if people were depending on machines instead of thinking and working independently.
Today, however, knowing how to use AI has become one of the essential skills people must possess. Looking back, it becomes clear that hiring culture in the AI economy now reflects a major shift in how organisations define talent. Certainly, university degrees and formal education systems still remain necessary, even though there are already signs that their dominance may gradually decline.
The unfortunate reality of the AI economy is that speed increasingly outweighs perfection in the workplace.
In Thailand, which is entering an ageing society, the domestic workforce will become increasingly scarce in the future. The idea of achieving more with fewer people has therefore become increasingly attractive to employers. A single person is now expected to manage tasks from beginning to end independently, and AI has made this expectation increasingly realistic.
The Thai government has entered the Thailand 4.0 era, in which every conversation regarding technology inevitably includes discussions about AI hubs, cloud systems, digital transformation, and innovation ecosystems.
Every structural transformation creates tensions between institutional stability and the need for rapid adaptation. Many education systems require years before curricula, workforce preparation systems, and institutional approval mechanisms can be updated. In many cases, these delays are addressed through bootcamp-style programmes designed to train students and retrain workers. Yet this institutional slowness is increasingly becoming a liability, leaving graduates unprepared for a labour market where AI evolves almost monthly.
Also Read: Is our talent pipeline ready for the AI economy? Not in the way we think
Online learning platforms are increasingly becoming important communities for AI skill development, reinforcing cultures of lifelong learning in response to the AI economy. Areas receiving particular attention include experimentation, learning in public, and peer-driven knowledge sharing.
Organisations across Thailand, especially in the central region, have already integrated AI into almost all organisational workflows. The private sector is now moving rapidly to secure market advantage and can no longer wait for educational institutions to revise their curricula. Instead, companies have increasingly shifted toward internal personnel development. As someone who previously worked in business development for a Thai software house, I clearly observed that nearly all competitors promoted AI technology as a way to reduce costs and working time while increasing profitability.
“I want people who can learn independently, spend their free time engaging in activities outside the classroom, or even pursue online learning,” one executive-level officer remarked during a discussion with interns.
“Nowadays, AI is everywhere, so why should we hire fresh graduates?” This was a question raised during a seminar on the future of AI and employment in Thailand.
Increasingly, there appears to be a growing gap between educational institutions and what the labour market actually demands. This gap is not primarily about coding skills, but about the ability to critically evaluate AI-generated content, think across disciplines, communicate effectively, and adapt to rapidly changing environments. Certainly, younger generations who grew up with gadgets in their hands can use AI tools fluently, yet the ability to use technology and the ability to think critically alongside it are not necessarily developing together.
According to an EdTech Hub regional brief, expanding access to technology is necessary but entirely insufficient. One major concern is unequal access to technological resources and learning opportunities. Today, discussions about AI readiness often emphasise encouraging people to learn independently, yet we frequently forget that individuals begin life with vastly unequal family resources and opportunities. Digital literacy, English proficiency, and even the quality of devices available to individuals vary significantly. In reality, meaningful participation in the AI economy requires readiness in both skills and resources.
Also Read: Building an inclusive AI economy starts with access to deployment tools
The growing gap between human adaptability and technological acceleration is increasingly reshaping, and in some cases displacing, parts of the workforce.
The ability to think critically requires rigorous and systematic intellectual training. Yet in a world where AI technology increasingly removes much of the process required to acquire knowledge, independent critical thinking is gradually becoming a rarer and more valuable asset.
Education systems appear to be attempting to preserve difficult learning processes. However, many learners increasingly prioritise comfort and seek ways to make learning mentally easier, causing existing systems to lose effectiveness. As a result, institutions increasingly adapt themselves to student preferences, sometimes at the expense of intellectual rigour.
Although education systems differ across contexts, mistakes are still often treated as failures rather than as part of learning itself. Without environments that allow experimentation and intellectual risk-taking, future workers may rely on AI to replace thinking rather than expand it.
Many students increasingly prioritise outcomes so heavily that they forget the process through which outcomes are achieved. More concerningly, they miss opportunities to understand how to cope with uncertainty and the pressure of not knowing, experiences that are essential for becoming a critical thinker.
The process of arriving at answers has been devalued by the ease of generating instant responses through AI systems. As a result, the challenge today is no longer obtaining information, but rather understanding what matters, what can be trusted, and what should be done once information has been obtained. However, systems without personnel capable of critical thought inevitably suffer serious consequences.
Also Read: What hiring a high school graduate taught me about talent in the AI economy
The solution begins with rethinking how humans learn alongside technology.
Modern problems require structural solutions. Policymakers must prioritise foundational digital literacy and systems that support lifelong learning, alongside the technological infrastructure necessary to sustain them.
If Thailand 4.0 is to succeed beyond infrastructure development and digital investment, it must also address the human dimension of technological transformation: adaptability, critical thinking, and equitable access to learning opportunities.
If we are serious about preparing for the AI economy, then the solution cannot simply be “teach more AI.”
Universities, schools, and educational institutions at every level should instead emphasise interdisciplinary learning connected to real-world problems. Future workers must be capable of integrating knowledge across disciplines rather than operating within isolated specialisations. In the AI economy, organisations are increasingly searching for diversity within individuals themselves: people capable of connecting knowledge from technology, policy, communication, and analysis simultaneously.
“In the future, actually, even now, AI has already become part of everyone’s daily life, and it affects every industry,” remarked one executive during a discussion at a technology event in Thailand. This reflects the future of the workforce: socially aware, intellectually flexible, and capable of adapting across disciplines.
Businesses themselves, as fundamental engines of capitalist economies, should also improve human resource development processes by fostering cultures of continuous adaptation rather than conducting training merely occasionally or because regulations require it.
All of this is necessary to build a workforce equipped with critical thinking, communication skills, and interdisciplinary learning capacities. AI technology is not going anywhere. Instead, it will increasingly support humanity in obtaining answers that are closer to the truth and in enabling actions that carry meaningful economic and social value.
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