This definitely lines up with my experience. I'm in the 0.2%, where work pays for us to have access to the latest frontier models via a CLI that lets the model essentially use our computer as if it were us. I've seen several colleagues transition from the 20% to the 0.2%, and it's always amusing seeing their excitement as they realise what's possible.

I remember that moment for myself too, and with the excitement came frustration. Until then I was convinced AI was always going to be slop, Will Smith Eating Spaghetti, the next corporate metaverse push to try and sell something people didn't need. It was very easy to hate, along with the environmental, social, cultural and financial problems it was causing. But suddenly my world view was in conflict. This technology got good. Really good. Like being given superpowers 25 years into my career. Suddenly I was a hypocrite, and it took me a while to get used to the idea that these problems weren't going away, and we'd need to solve them.