The generation everyone expected to be most at home with AI is the one souring on it fastest. Gallup's latest survey (run February 24–March 4, 2026 with 1,572 Americans aged 14–29) found Gen Z's excitement about AI fell to 22% — down 14 points in a year — while the share who feel angry rose to 31%. Here's the twist: usage didn't drop with it. About half still open an AI tool at least once a week. So the story isn't "Gen Z quit AI." It's "Gen Z keeps using a tool they're increasingly uneasy about."

Three things to know

  • The mood flipped. Excitement fell to 22% (from 36% last year), anger climbed to 31%, anxiety stayed high at 42%. A Gallup researcher called swings of 7–10 points in a single year "a meaningful shift," not noise.
  • But usage held. 22% use AI daily and 29% weekly — about 51% at least once a week. Disliking it isn't the same as dropping it.
  • This is US data, not Indonesia. It surveys American teens and young adults. The pattern might rhyme elsewhere or not — no comparable national survey is cited here.

So what actually changed?

Not how often AI gets used — how it feels to use it. Last year the dominant note was curiosity. This year it's irritation and suspicion. Because Gallup's "Voices of Gen Z" study tracks both feelings and habits in the same group, you can watch two lines move in opposite directions at once: attitude down, behavior flat. Those two diverging lines are the story.

Put simply: AI has become background infrastructure — used every day, but it stopped feeling impressive.

The numbers (and where they come from)

Every figure above traces to one source: a Gallup survey with the Walton Family Foundation and GSV Ventures, part of the "Voices of Gen Z" project.

  • Excited: 22% (down 14 points from 2025).
  • Angry: 31% (up 9 points).
  • Anxious: 42% (unchanged).
  • Hopeful: 18% (down 9 points).
  • Using AI: 22% daily + 29% weekly = about 51% at least weekly; 19% say never.

The detail people skip but shouldn't: the sample is 1,572 people aged 14–29 in the US, drawn from a random address-based panel, with a margin of error around ±3.6 points. So "22%" really means roughly 18–26% — a range, not a fixed number.

Why is Gen Z cooling on it?

The survey measures what changed, not why. The reporting around it offers theories — these are sources' opinions, not settled facts:

  • Jobs. Many young people feel AI is "gutting" entry-level roles. The Week cites a global survey saying 43% of CEOs plan to cut junior positions — exactly the on-ramp new grads rely on.
  • It feels forced. Unlike older tech adopted for fun, AI often arrived as a mandate from schools and employers. Psychologist Julie Lee says many young people feel it's being "pushed on them" without regard for their wellbeing.
  • Originality. Gen Z prizes authenticity; some feel AI rides on human work without credit. MIT student Gbemi Odebode points to corporate profit motives and thin oversight.
  • "Cognitively cooked." MIT student Ellie Bulcena worries younger Gen Z will lean on AI so hard their thinking skills dull.

Another mood marker: at several 2026 commencements, speakers who praised AI were booed by students — reported at the University of Central Florida and the University of Arizona, among others.

What's still fuzzy

  • It's US data. Don't read it as "Indonesian Gen Z rejects AI." Our jobs, schools, and access look different.
  • Feelings ≠ behavior. You can resent AI and still use it — this survey is the proof.
  • The "why" is unsettled. The jobs, creativity, and environment explanations are theories and opinions, not proven cause-and-effect.
  • One survey isn't a verdict. Margin of error, question wording, and timing all matter. Compare it against other surveys before drawing big conclusions.

Why this matters to you

Two reasons. First, it's about you: how do you want to use a tool you touch every day but don't fully trust? Second, it's reading practice. There's a real gap between the headline "Gen Z hates AI" and the reality "excitement fell, usage held, and the data is American." The second one is messier — and it's the accurate one.

Quick recall

Without scrolling up: in that survey, which one dropped — how often Gen Z uses AI, or how excited they are about it?

Try it out

You see a headline: "Study: Gen Z rejects AI." Using this article, name one reason that headline is misleading — then one question you'd check before believing it (hint: who, when, and where were they surveyed).

Still curious?

  • Why do people grow more annoyed with something yet keep using it daily?
  • What's the difference between a survey of "feelings" and data on "behavior"?
  • If a survey runs in the US, how do you tell whether it applies to Indonesia?
  • What does a "margin of error of ±3.6 points" actually mean?
  • The claim that "AI is erasing entry-level jobs" — how strong is the evidence so far?

Sources