Vista Equity Partners CEO Robert Smith Advocates for Intern Programs Amid AI Advancements

Robert F. Smith, the billionaire founder and CEO of the tech-focused private equity firm Vista Equity Partners, has called upon businesses adopting artificial intelligence (AI) to preserve their intern programs.

Speaking at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech in Aspen, Smith highlighted the importance of integrating young people into the corporate workforce. He argued that this inclusion not only facilitates the transfer of knowledge between generations but also helps maintain the spirit of optimism that has historically driven technological progress.

Smith, who has built his career in the technology sector, acknowledged that AI is poised to bring about massive disruption to the workforce. However, he contended that this shift does not diminish the fundamental value of internships. He stated that young individuals must remain an integral part of this technological evolution, regardless of how AI impacts job structures.

Smith's own career path underscores his advice. As a high school student in Denver, he persistently sought an internship at Bell Labs, a prominent research center of its time. He was eventually accepted into a program typically reserved for college juniors and seniors, where he later developed a reliability test for semiconductors. Smith returned to Bell Labs during his summer breaks while attending Cornell University.

As the chief executive and chairman of Vista Equity Partners, a firm he established in 2000, Smith oversees a portfolio of approximately 90 software companies, including Klarna, Marketo, and BetterCloud.

According to Fortune, Smith's discussion also touched upon Vista’s investment strategies in AI, the types of companies positioned to thrive in the new era, and anecdotes from his early interactions with Andy Jassy, who would later become Amazon's CEO. He also shared insights on business strategies and his perspective on Elon Musk and the SpaceX IPO.