Merel Schöffel

I’m sharing a story about what it means to be a specialist in an AI-driven world. I’ll start with the myth of “AGI”, a term that sounds impressive, but doesn’t reflect the reality of what we’re building or what we actually need. The real shift is happening elsewhere: in how AI is reshaping the way we develop expertise.

We’re facing a strange paradox. Organisations say they can’t find enough technical talent, yet junior roles are disappearing fast. In tech, entry-level positions dropped by 35%, while demand for seniors keeps rising. Everyone wants seniors, but we’re quietly removing the conditions required to create them.

AI is taking over much of the work that used to help juniors learn. It seems efficient, but it removes the space where skills are formed. Researchers call this skill atrophy: not the loss of jobs, but the loss of abilities. And that’s risky at a time when we need more digital competence, not less.

My keynote explores what this shift means for developing expertise, why juniors are the first to feel the impact, and what it means for teams and organisations that depend on long-term competence rather than short-term output.

Most importantly, I’ll talk about what the solution looks like in practice: creating intentional learning spaces, keeping real thinking work in human hands, pairing juniors with experienced colleagues, and using AI to support reasoning rather than replace it.

Because if we want to have specialists in the future people who truly understand the craft  we have to design environments where they can actually learn it. Spaces that build the foundation for good design and for healthy workplaces where people can grow, contribute and stay confident in their skills.