{"id":355,"date":"2026-05-19T14:09:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T14:09:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=355"},"modified":"2026-05-19T14:09:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T14:09:10","slug":"gen-zs-ai-backlash-is-getting-louder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=355","title":{"rendered":"Gen Z’s AI backlash is getting louder"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Corporate America and Silicon Valley have been taught a new lesson: don’t praise AI during a commencement speech unless you’re OK with getting booed at by students.<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Big Short\u2019 investor Michael Burry says the AI boom is a dead ringer for the dot-com bubble<\/a><\/p>\n

AI anxiety is growing and, in some cases, it’s boiling over into public backlash. The 2026 graduation season has seen speakers at commencement ceremonies, including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Big Machine Records CEO Scott Borchetta, get booed when they mention AI. <\/p>\n

This backlash is highlighting a gulf between people who feel technology offers new opportunities and the Gen Z audience, which is growing increasingly anxious about what AI means for their future.<\/p>\n

Fear of AI taking jobs<\/strong><\/h2>\n

There is evidence that some Gen Z attitudes toward AI have grown increasingly negative.<\/p>\n

A survey from earlier this year, conducted by the Walton Family Foundation, GSV Ventures, and Gallup, and sampling 1,572 14\u2011 to 29\u2011year\u2011olds, found that Gen Z’s excitement toward AI has dropped 14% over the past year, while feelings of anger toward these tools have risen.<\/p>\n

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I attended the University of Arizona commencement ceremony, where Eric Schmidt @ericschmidt faced boos throughout his speech.
If you don\u2019t know how young graduates feel about AI, this post is for you.
The message is clear: it reflects growing skepticism toward AI narratives\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/zVKMqCSrVF<\/p>\n

\u2014 Christina Kueppers, LL.M in IP & Technology Law (@cvkueppersbooks) May 16, 2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

The grad job market has steadily worsened since 2023 after a hiring surge in the years immediately after the pandemic.<\/p>\n

Some recent grads have told Business Insider they have been searching for months for full-time jobs after college, and resentment has been brewing among young people who chose their majors before the rise of generative AI.<\/p>\n

That frustration has likely only deepened as companies increasingly cite AI as a reason for layoffs.<\/p>\n

A survey conducted by AI company Writer and research firm Workplace Intelligence, published in April, found that 29% of employees \u2014 including 44% of Gen Z \u2014 said they had undermined or resisted their company’s AI strategy.<\/p>\n

Read more Figure AI had one of its robots race an intern to sort packages. See who lost.<\/a><\/p>\n

The survey included 1,200 C-suite executives and 1,200 employees across the US, UK, and Europe.<\/p>\n

Among those who said they had worked against their company’s AI strategy, some said they did so because they didn’t want AI to take over their jobs.<\/p>\n

Deal with it<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Big Machine Records CEO Scott Borchetta’s word of advice to grads about AI? Deal with it.<\/p>\n

That was his response when grads at Middle Tennessee State University booed him for saying that AI is rewriting production. “You can hear me now, or you can pay me later,” he added.<\/p>\n

Some young people do resonate with Borchetta’s sentiment. Some Gen Zers<\/u> say AI is enabling them to advance more quickly in their career, for example.<\/p>\n

While negative feelings toward AI are increasing, over half of 14- to 29-year-olds say they use AI daily or weekly, according to the study by the Walton Family Foundation, GSV Ventures, and Gallup.<\/p>\n

But it’s clear the mood toward AI has shifted.<\/p>\n

AI anxiety is affecting culture, too \u2014 it has sparked a nostalgia for old tech and helped propel a trend toward going analog.<\/p>\n

“OK, I struck a chord,” was what speaker and real estate exec Gloria Caulfield said when she heard the boos from the audience at the University of Central Florida’s spring commencement.<\/p>\n

If you are a Gen Zer with a story to share,\u00a0please<\/em> contact this reporter via email at <\/em>rshahidi@insider.com<\/em> or Signal at @royashahidi.36<\/em>. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; <\/em>here’s our guide<\/em> to sharing information securely.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more I thought I could juggle motherhood and a promotion at Amazon. A turning point made me reevaluate everything.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AI anxiety is growing and, in some cases, it’s boiling over into public backlash.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":354,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech"],"yoast_head":"\nGen Z's AI backlash is getting louder - American home journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=355\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gen Z's AI backlash is getting louder - American home journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"AI anxiety is growing and, in some cases, it's boiling over into public backlash.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=355\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American home journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-19T14:09:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a3bb30439d8074c26cddd2e4af7af957\"},\"headline\":\"Gen Z’s AI backlash is getting louder\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T14:09:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355\"},\"wordCount\":655,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/7e88a6dce4a9c0917fec39f9df113f00.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Tech\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanhomejournals.com\\\/?p=355\",\"name\":\"Gen Z's AI backlash is getting louder - 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