Gen Z is increasingly disillusioned with AI — just not enough to stop using it.
A new Gallup report released this week, based on responses from nearly 1,600 people ages 14 to 29 across the US, suggests the hype is wearing off for the digital-native generation as AI becomes more embedded in school and work. Enthusiasm is falling and resentment is growing, even as many young people feel they still need to use the technology.
Gallup’s poll, conducted in February and March this year, found Gen Z’s feelings on AI have cooled significantly since last year. Only 18 percent said they were hopeful about the technology and 22 percent said they were excited, down from 27 percent and 36 percent, respectively. At the same time, anger is growing: 31 percent of respondents said they feel angry about AI, up from 22 percent last year. Anxiety about AI has remained relatively steady at around 40 percent.
The perceived cost of using AI for work or school has also shifted. Almost half of Gen Z workers said they now think the risks of using AI in the workplace outweigh the benefits — up 11 points from last year — even as a majority of 56 percent acknowledged the tools will help them complete work faster. That comes with a cost, too: Eight in 10 Gen Z-ers said using AI to do work faster will make learning harder in the future.
All this hasn’t stopped Gen Z from using AI, although Gallup said “growth has slowed to a crawl.” Just over half of Gen Z-ers said they use AI at least weekly, up four points from 47 percent last year, and around half said they think they’ll need it for higher education or their future careers.
“Gen Z isn’t rejecting AI outright, but they are reassessing its role in their lives,” said Stephanie Marken, senior partner at Gallup. “What we’re seeing in the data is a generation that recognizes AI’s utility but is increasingly concerned about its long-term impact on learning, trust, and career readiness.”
The findings come as AI settles into a more mature technology, with clearer consequences for a generation entering a difficult job market marked by mass layoffs while also navigating schools and colleges struggling to adapt to the rapid proliferation of AI. All as distrust about AI grows between the general public and the companies racing to build it.
