Graduates who grew up with AI tools may hold a notable advantage in today's workplace, according to one startup founder.

Clay Bavor, cofounder of Sierra in 2023, pointed out that some of the most productive team members are in their early twenties because they adapt more readily to AI than many seasoned professionals.

"I cannot recall a period when a young person lacking prior work experience but equipped with the right mindset and hands-on use of these tools has been valued quite like this," Bavor remarked in a recent appearance on the "20VC" podcast.

The former Google executive has observed AI closing the performance divide between newer and veteran staff members.

"Some of our most effective employees at the entire company are 22 or 23 years old and have been completely AI-pilled and have a comfort and facility with these tools that many of our more experienced folks do not," he said.

Bavor's observations arrive amid broader shifts where AI is transforming entry-level roles, prompting employers to seek candidates skilled in AI use while preserving sound judgment and adjusting expectations for early-career hires.

At Sierra, this evolution has led the company to revamp its engineering interview process with a stronger AI emphasis, Bavor explained.

Rather than traditional coding tests, applicants are now invited to create an app with their preferred AI coding assistants.

"We are going to pay for your tokens and then build it. Tell us how you went through building it," Bavor said.

He anticipates this method will extend throughout the firm's hiring evaluations.

"I will be disappointed if in the next no more than two months not every one of our interviews has some strong AI native component to it," he said.

AI remains a point of tension for recent graduates, as some commencement speakers faced criticism for endorsing the technology and others have reported challenges securing full-time positions amid company references to AI in workforce adjustments.

Yet Bavor observed that students who experimented extensively with generative AI during their studies gain a practical edge over many midlevel colleagues.

"Coming out of university as a master of these AI tools," he said, "let me point you to a thousand companies that would love to have you infuse what you know into how they are doing things."

Whether this positive outlook holds across the wider AI sector is still uncertain.

Although several tech leaders express optimism about AI-native graduates, a recent working paper from Harvard Business School and INSEAD researchers indicated that AI-native startups examined from 2020 to 2024 hired roughly 15 percent fewer entry-level workers than non-AI peers while adding more senior and technical roles.