- Gen Z was once promised that getting a job at a huge technology company like Meta, Microsoft, or Salesforce guaranteed six-figure success. But thanks to AI automation, they’re actively being boxed out of the industry, with the proportion of workers aged 21 to 25 being slashed in half at these massive public businesses. Plus, the average age of an employee at a tech company is rising. Experts tell Fortune this change may stifle innovation in the long-term—and there are still ways a Gen Z worker can get their foot in the door.
Gen Z are digital natives raised in the era of YouTube, Tumblr, Instagram, and Facebook; and now, they’re some of the strongest AI users in their personal and professional lives. But Silicon Valley tech companies looking to make waves with AI aren’t holding onto the digitally savvy generation—instead, they’re actively boxing them out.
The percentage of young Gen Z employees between the ages of 21 and 25 has been cut in half at technology companies over the past two years, according to recent data from compensation management software business Pave with workforce data from more than 8,300 companies. These young workers accounted for 15% of the workforce at large public tech firms in January 2023. By August 2025, they only represented 6.8%. The situation isn’t pretty at big private tech companies, either—during that same time period, the proportion of early-career Gen Z employees dwindled from 9.3% to 6.8%.
Meanwhile, the average age of a worker at a tech company has risen dramatically over those two and a half years. Between January 2023 and July 2025, the average age of all employees at large public technology businesses rose from 34.3 years to 39.4 years—more than a five year difference. On the private side, the change was less drastic, with the typical age only increasing from 35.1 to 36.6 years old.
Millennials are currently ruling the tech industry and clinging to their roles as the economy is rocked by uncertainty due to tariffs, inflation increases living expenses, and AI swipes jobs. Meanwhile, entry-level Gen Zers are just hoping to get their careers off the ground.
“If you’re 35 or 40 years old, you’re pretty established in your career, you have skills that you know cannot yet be disrupted by AI,” Matt Schulman, founder and CEO of Pave, tells Fortune. “There’s still a lot of human judgment when you’re operating at the more senior level…If you’re a 22-year-old that used to be an Excel junkie or something, then that can be disrupted. So it’s almost a tale of two cities.”
Schulman points to a few reasons why tech company workforces are getting older and locking Gen Z out of jobs. One is that big companies—like Salesforce, Meta, and Microsoft—are becoming a lot more efficient thanks to the advent of AI. And despite their soaring trillion-dollar profits, they’re cutting employees at the bottom rungs in favor of automation. Entry-level jobs have also dwindled because of AI agents, and stalling promotions across many agencies looking to do more with less. Once technology companies weed out junior roles, occupied by Gen Zers, their workforces are bound to rise in age. And experts tell Fortune that spells a lot of trouble for innovation and long-term business stability.
Why Silicon Valley’s workforce is getting older—and what the long-term impacts are
The rapid disappearance of Gen Z at large technology companies is a dog whistle to what’s really going behind the scenes—AI is automating roles, from entry-level upwards. But what’s worrying about their presence disappearing faster at large public companies is the fact that early career pipelines are being completely disrupted. And they’re often the businesses with enough equity to invest in these Gen Z-targeted talent initiatives in the first place.
“Most public companies have fleshed out training programs that are squarely centered around new grad programs and university recruiting,” the Pave CEO, with early-career experience at Facebook and Microsoft, explains. “A company like Meta, their whole talent thesis was to go after universities, get the smart 21-year-olds, and then train them up. It’s just not as relevant as a paradigm for private companies.”
Jeri Doris, chief people officer at software company Justworks, tells Fortune workforce reductions have created a difficult barrier for Gen Z. Businesses are striving to do more with less, cutting entry-level roles and striving for AI automation to save on headcount costs. Mass firings have wiped whole corporate departments across the U.S., as companies announced more than 806,000 job cuts from January through the end of July this year, according to a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. It’s a 75% spike from the approximately 460,000 reductions announced through the first seven months of last year.
“Mass tech layoffs and a reduction in entry-level jobs means it’s harder for Gen Z to find open roles to apply for,” Doris explains. “On the flip side, Gen Z is prioritizing flexible working, job stability and work-life balance—something the tech industry may not be able to offer—so they’re applying to roles in different industries.”
As thousands of Gen Z are shut out making a name in the industry—even just getting a foot in the door—there could be serious long-term impacts. In the near future, many CEOs may espouse the money-saving potential of automating entry-level jobs. But looking 10 or 20 years ahead, when technology companies’ current millennial workers progress towards senior roles, there’s the question of who will take over their mid-level jobs. If Gen Z don’t have the opportunity to learn from the bottom-up, there presents a major issue of stifled innovation and a lack of talent ready to step into those positions.
Pave CEO Schulman uses sales roles as an example: “There’s a very linear, structured path that exists across like almost every tech company. You start doing the junior-level outbound sourcing work, then you become a mid-market account executive, then you become an enterprise seller. Enterprise sellers, in my opinion, will not be disrupted by AI anytime soon.”
“Enterprise sellers are still needed, but you’re removing the roles beneath them on that career hierarchy. How are we going to train the future of enterprise sellers, if they aren’t going through the conventional steps to get there?”
How Gen Z tech industry hopefuls can make the best of the situation
While the situation looks scary for Gen Zers looking to get a job at a tech firm, experts tell Fortune they should leverage the assets they have. Being new to the industry can even work to their advantage.
“[Companies] can hire a 21, 22-year-old that has not been brainwashed by years of corporate America. And instead, can just break the rules and leverage AI to a much greater degree without the hindrance of years of bias,” Schulman says. “I do think there is a new crop of these young ones that are just really leveraging AI maximally.”
To be a highly sought-after worker in this AI-automated era, that means being “manically” focused on all the new models that come out. Gen Z should study how to prompt chatbots extremely effectively, and even create bespoke models for their lines of work. Priya Rathod, workplace trends editor for Indeed, also tells Fortune that the young professionals shouldn’t give up on the tech industry. Instead, they should rethink their path within it—upskilling and taking on new career pathways can be a strong point of entry. Lucky for Gen Z, they don’t have to go back to college to get an upper-hand in the talent market.
“Building skills through certifications, gig work, and online communities can open doors,” Rathod recommends. “Roles in UX, AI ethics, cybersecurity, and product operations are promising entry points. Instead of waiting for opportunities, they should create them—through freelance projects, networking, and showcasing work online.”
“Employers are increasingly rethinking traditional degree requirements. For Gen Z, the right certifications or micro credentials can outweigh a lack of years on the resume. This helps them stay competitive even when entry level opportunities shrink.”
