Altman suggests that four years of college might exceed what the current world requires.

      Sam Altman expressed at a tech interns summit that two years of college was “the exact right amount of time” for him, suggesting that four years might be excessive in today’s world. He shared this perspective with an audience facing an entry-level job market increasingly impacted by AI.

      According to Altman, a degree may take longer to achieve than necessary. He mentioned that two years at Stanford was optimal for him, and extending his studies would have yielded “vastly diminishing returns.”

      His comments were directed at tech interns during a surprise visit to Internapalooza, a networking event organized by Cory Levy for students interning in the industry over the summer. Altman remarked, “I’ve sort of thought that maybe the way the world has evolved, college just shouldn’t be as long as it is,” while acknowledging the value of meeting people, living independently, and working on projects during that time.

      The context of the audience adds complexity to this discussion. TNW reported that AI is undermining summer internships, traditionally a path for students to secure jobs. This issue isn’t limited to the U.S.; a Swiss study indicated a decline in job postings for entry-level positions as automation takes over tasks that juniors would typically perform.

      Altman’s further advice aligned with this sentiment, albeit inadvertently. He noted, “You can make a whole startup kind of by yourself in a room with a lot of AI tokens, but not much else.” While this perspective can be liberating from a founder's point of view, it suggests that there may not be a need for many internship positions.

      Not everyone interprets this trend negatively. The CEO of Adecco has claimed that AI is transforming jobs rather than eliminating them, offering a more optimistic viewpoint.

      The remainder of the session included typical advice from founders. Altman pointed out that people often squander efforts trying to gain credibility, although he admitted that enterprise sales was an exception and that he overcame that challenge by hiring someone with more experience.

      It’s important to keep in mind Altman’s own journey before acting on this advice. He left Stanford in 2005 to co-found Loopt, which became part of Y Combinator's inaugural batch and led to his leadership at the incubator, while his mentor, Peter Thiel, offers $250,000 over two years to under-22s who agree to drop out. As Altman himself stated, “you don’t get to run the experiment twice.”

      Published August 15, 2026 - 9:25 pm UTC

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