The New Generalist

The 20th century belonged to specialists. Experts carved out narrow domains and dug deep. The system rewarded it — the best knee surgeon, the best COBOL programmer, the best ad copywriter. Depth was the differentiator. But AI tilts the game board.

We're entering a world where pattern recognition and problem framing matter more than memorised detail. Where the person who can move fluidly between domains — code and copy, product and pitch, frontend and finance — has the upper hand.

AI doesn't replace generalists. It amplifies them.

But only if they know enough to wield it. You must understand each domain well enough to confidently deploy AI at a problem within it — to frame the right question, judge the quality of the answer, and know when the model is bluffing.

This isn't a license for dilettantism. Quite the opposite. The new generalist needs taste, judgment, and functional literacy across multiple fields. Not deep expertise, but enough depth to sense what's right — and what's off.

In this new era, value comes from breadth plus discernment. Knowing how things connect. Asking better questions. Moving fast between silos and stitching insights into systems.

The specialist hasn't disappeared. But the conductor, the orchestrator, the sharp-eyed generalist?

They're the ones AI just made dangerous.