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Pope Leo XIV’s new encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, arrives at a moment of profound uncertainty about the future of human work and human purpose. The document is formally rooted in Catholic social teaching, but its central questions belong to everyone.

Four years after the debut of ChatGPT, the first class to have the powerful tool of generative AI throughout their entire college career will soon graduate. At the current pace of change, it’s worth asking: Are these students among the last to work with an all-human faculty?

Over the past two decades, Hispanic and Latino adults have made some of the fastest gains in education and training after high school of any group in the United States. Since 2009, the share of Hispanic and Latino adults with college degrees has increased by 11 percentage points.

Today, Jamie admits he underestimated the speed of change due to AI. Last month, he delivered an address to the Economic Club of Indianaabout what it means for jobs, education, and the economy. On this week’s episode of the IBJ Podcast, Merisotis and host Mason King dig deeper into his conclusions.

It’s hard to know what to think about artificial intelligence these days. The pendulum swings wildly, with some people warning of a robotic surveillance state while others dismiss the trend as overblown hype.

“We don’t know the answers to some of AI’s most pressing effects — we barely know the questions,” said Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the Lumina Foundation. “But philanthropy must ensure that the concerns of workers, students, and families remain centered as we craft our AI future.”

Every so often, a new story makes the rounds about how Americans without four-year college degrees can still make six-figure salaries. It’s the kind of story that spreads quickly: hope for the non-college majority, proof that not all good jobs require a diploma.

Merisotis offers insight from his decades of experience as an author, policy innovator, and philanthropist on the future of education and work.