Jason Wei essay: 'who you know' is displacing 'what you can do' as the key to success
ricklamers · x · 2026-11-12
- Former OpenAI researcher Jason Wei published an essay arguing that the traditional belief "hard work matters more than connections" is giving way: the value of "what you can do" is falling while "who you know" is rising.
- Wei says he once subscribed to the meritocratic view both as a scientist and as an American, but his experience in the AI industry has shifted his thinking.
- Reposter ricklamers says the advice matches his own experience and calls the essay's final line 'so meta'.
More from AGI Musings
- Webflow CEO: PMs now start with PRs, teams shrank to half a pizza — aakashgupta · 2026-11-12
- iamtrask: AI attribution will boost safety, alignment and collective control — iamtrask · 2026-11-12
- Andrew Trask: Pre/Post Training Should Just Be Called Training — iamtrask · 2026-11-12
- dioscuri pokes holes in three popular LLM metaphors: services, social tech, simulators — dioscuri · 2026-11-12
- Nic Carter: Fearing AI oversupply in 2026 is like fearing oil oversupply in 1910 — 0xAllen_ · 2026-11-12
- Jensen Huang pushes back on Bill Gates' robot and AI token tax proposal — Kyrannio · 2026-11-12