Michael Saylor has a simple message for young people entering an AI-heavy economy: learn the technology early, then use it to find opportunities others have not seen. He also mentioned a trick called “finding the new S-curve.”

The Strategy founder (formerly MicroStrategy) made the argument during a recent Diary of a CEO interview with Steven Bartlett.

Don’t Try to Outwork AI

Saylor believes AI will increasingly handle routine knowledge work. For an 18-year-old deciding what to study, learning tasks AI can already perform may offer less long-term value.

“You don’t want to learn how to do things the AI can do,” Saylor said. His alternative: “What you want to do is learn how to ask the AI to do something that’s never been done before.”

That could mean creating a product or using AI to make an existing service cheaper. He also stresses that people still need expertise in a particular field.

Find the New S-Curve

Saylor describes technological progress as an S-curve: a technology develops slowly, enters rapid improvement, then eventually matures.

His advice is to position yourself near the start of that rapid-growth phase. AI and other emerging digital technologies, in his view, still offer that opportunity. 

The goal is to spot something that has only recently become possible and build around it early.

“So, let me tell you why you shouldn’t buy a house… [you’re] taking on a massive tax load and you’re taking on a maintenance load. These things are all hard, right? Real estate business is hard. Starting your own company is hard. Investing in other companies is hard… So that’s why Bitcoin is such a compelling thing. Why shouldn’t the typical person just be able to take their money, put it into an asset which appreciates in value 15% a year, and they don’t have to worry about it?” Saylor said.

Is Saylor Right?

Broadly, yes. Stanford researchers said in July that AI’s impact on worker productivity is generally positive, while the tougher market for recent graduates may already be partly linked to AI.

The strongest part of Saylor’s argument is domain expertise. Knowing how to prompt ChatGPT alone is unlikely to create a durable advantage. Combining AI fluency with deep knowledge of a specific problem has a stronger economic case.

MicroStrategy Is Having a Difficult 2026

Saylor’s own company also shows the risks of aggressive bets. Strategy held 840,447 Bitcoin as of August 16, bought for roughly $63.36 billion at an average price of $75,385.

It reported an $8.22 billion Q2 net loss, largely from falling Bitcoin prices. Strategy has also faced criticism over shareholder dilution and recent Bitcoin sales after years of Saylor promoting a strong hold philosophy.

This week, Saylor told investors to prepare for “difficult years.” His broader point still stands: being early can create opportunity, but execution and risk matter.

Source: BeInCrypto