As AI looms large CEOs urge return to critical thinking
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In a business climate where AI is expected to rival human capability within five years CEOs and prominent figures are calling on young professionals to rediscover foundational skills rather than rely entirely on technology. Daniel Lubetzky founder of KIND and a regular on Shark Tank argues that Gen Z should spend less time scrolling and more time studying Plato Socrates and Aristotle. He warns that critical thinking curiosity and creativity remain scarce commodities in the marketplace and that embracing those helps one compete in way that AI cannot match.
AI readiness and the skills gap
Recent surveys reinforce Lubetzky’s concern. A Kearney study found 89 percent of CEOs say AI is strategically important while only about a quarter believe their organisations are fully prepared to integrate it. According to Gartner in 2025 many enterprises are moving beyond experimentation and deploying AI in core operating models and people strategy but big gaps remain in leadership capability and workforce skills. As businesses adopt AI driven tools leaders say they need employees who can question assumptions test sources reason through trade offs and adapt when models fail.
The American landscape
In the United States businesses are facing pressure on multiple fronts. Global competition especially from nations with aggressive AI policies is pushing firms to work faster. Regulation remains in flux especially around ethical AI use privacy and fairness. American companies are responding by investing in AI upskilling programmes rethinking hiring criteria and emphasising soft skills more than before. Critical thinking is emerging as among the top competencies leaders seek in both new hires and existing teams. Boards are increasingly asking whether executives themselves have the intellectual curiosity to push back on simplifying assumptions in strategy planning and risk assessment.
Philosophy as competitive tool
The idea of turning to ancient philosophers may sound unusual in a hypermodern context but there is precedent. CEOs from AWS and OpenAI have said creativity critical thinking and the ability to generate new ideas will be among the most valuable skills in the coming years. Lubetzky’s call to study classic philosophy is less about revisiting old ideas and more about learning a mindset of asking why pursuing deeper truth testing claims and being willing to revisit one’s own errors. That mindset helps in interpreting AI output spotting bias and creating strategy rather than simply following automated signals.
What business leaders must do
Organisations that succeed will combine AI adoption with human judgement not try to replace it. They must invest in training that emphasises analytical reasoning source evaluation uncertainty handling. Executives need to lead by example showing genuine curiosity admitting what they do not know and questioning comfortable narratives. Cultures that tolerate failure encourage introspection and reward originality tend to outperform those that value conformity.
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