Yes, the college admissions landscape is quite different now from 20 years ago, even different from 5 years ago, and it will probably continue to shift and change as your 7th grader gets older!
Please don’t start getting into this in 7th grade 
It’s great to feel inspired by things he sees when visiting friends and relatives (like your airplane turbines story)… I remember visiting my aunt who was doing a PhD in geophysics, and being really excited about how she was using an electron microscope to take pictures of moon rocks. This kind of experience might get a kid excited about learning more about a subject or a possible future career. But try not to encourage him to get attached to specific dream colleges, try not to shape his interests by what you think colleges are looking for … and especially try not to pressure him with things like GPA and SAT and number of APs and leadership positions in ECs.
Google “MIT applying sideways” for a helpful perspective that is great for prospective college applicants (and their parents) in any grade!