Why would anyone hire me if AI already does it better?
A generation raised on digital promise now finds itself standing at the edge of an economy being quietly remade without them. Across Europe and the United States, young people are organizing against the accelerating pace of artificial intelligence development, driven not by technophobia but by a concrete fear: that the future will not have room for them in it. Activists like France's Trazzi and researchers tracking youth sentiment are documenting a measurable shift from hope to anger, as job markets contract and power consolidates among a small constellation of technology companies. The question this moment poses is ancient even if its terms are new — who gets to shape the world, and who is simply shaped by it.
- Youth anger toward AI has climbed nine points in a single year, with nearly half of those aged 14–29 reporting anxiety — a generational mood shift that is now spilling into the streets.
- Tech job openings requiring no prior experience collapsed by 41% in Spain in 2025, and four in ten employers globally are planning workforce cuts wherever AI can absorb the labor.
- Stop the AI Race is staging coordinated protests outside the offices of the world's most powerful AI companies, demanding a pause that industry leaders have already signaled they will not take.
- Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt told booing university students that they would be the ones to build the future — a reassurance that landed with the hollow ring of a door closing.
- Wealth from AI investment is concentrating in a shrinking circle of companies even as the broader social costs — degraded content, energy consumption, lost careers — are distributed widely and unevenly.
- Without structural intervention, researchers warn of a generational talent collapse: fewer young people pursuing education, lower wages for those who do, and a labor market that has moved on without them.
A French activist named Trazzi stepped down from his role after just seven days for health reasons, but not before helping launch Stop the AI Race — an organization staging protests outside the San Francisco offices of Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI. He was galvanized in part by DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis's January statement that he would support a coordinated pause in AI development if other companies agreed. Trazzi knew they wouldn't. Another demonstration is planned for July, and he believes the anger he senses among young people will bring more of them out.
That anger is measurable. A recent Gallup survey found that only 22 percent of people aged 14 to 29 feel hopeful about AI — down fourteen points from the previous year — while 44 percent report anxiety and 31 percent say it makes them angry. Sociologist Javier García Manglano at the University of Navarra has watched the mood shift among his students. Many once welcomed AI for making them more efficient. Now they ask a darker question: if AI already does many things better than I do, why would anyone hire me?
The data suggests companies are already answering that question. In Spain, tech job openings that don't require experience fell 41 percent in 2025. The World Economic Forum reports that 40 percent of business leaders plan to reduce staff in areas where AI can absorb the work. Videos of university students booing speakers on AI have circulated widely — most notably at the University of Arizona, where former Google CEO Eric Schmidt told a restless crowd that "the future is not written" and that they would be the ones to build it. The reception was skeptical.
Miguel Lucas, a global innovation director, sees a grimmer trajectory: as job access narrows, fewer young people will pursue specialized education, and those who do will likely earn less. Meanwhile, a Stanford study confirms that AI investment surged further in 2025, yet its profits remain concentrated in a small group of companies whose public standing continues to erode. Trazzi's deeper concern mirrors this — not just unemployment, but the concentration of power in Silicon Valley's wealthiest hands. "We want to maintain control of our lives and our freedom," he says. Whether the movement he helped start can translate that sentiment into structural change, or whether the machinery of acceleration simply continues, remains the open question of this moment.
A French activist named Trazzi lasted seven days in his role before stepping back for health reasons, but not before he believed his letter had moved the needle on something consequential. In January, Demis Hassabis, the CEO of DeepMind, stated he would support a coordinated pause in artificial intelligence development if other companies committed to the same. Trazzi knew it wouldn't happen. So he founded Stop the AI Race, an organization that stages protests to slow the acceleration of AI advancement. Last March, they gathered two hundred people outside the offices of Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI in San Francisco. Another demonstration is planned for July 11, and Trazzi believes the public anger he senses will bring more people into the fold.
What he sees in the young people around him is a specific kind of dread. Recent graduates and those about to enter the workforce are increasingly convinced they won't find jobs. They fear that artificial intelligence will eventually become capable of doing everything they can do. The future, in their eyes, has become uncertain. They don't know how they'll pay their bills. But Trazzi's concerns extend beyond employment. He points to the concentration of power accumulating in the hands of Silicon Valley's wealthiest figures. "We want to maintain control of our lives and our freedom," he explains. The worry about AI isn't confined to activists. The technology is expected to reshape society in ways no previous innovation has. This week, Pope Leo XIV will release his first encyclical, centered on human dignity in an algorithmic world. In recent months, the pontiff has warned of the profound impact technology could have on critical thinking, social justice, and work—especially for young people increasingly anxious about what comes next.
The numbers tell a stark story. A Gallup survey released last month found that only 22 percent of people aged 14 to 29 feel hopeful about artificial intelligence, down fourteen points from 2025. Meanwhile, 31 percent say it makes them angry—up nine points in a year—and 44 percent report it causes them anxiety. Javier García Manglano, a sociologist and researcher at the University of Navarra, has begun noticing this shift among students. Many initially celebrated AI's arrival, he observes, because it seemed to make them more efficient. Now there's unease. "If AI already does many things better than I do, why would anyone hire me?" he says. Companies are already answering that question by cutting positions. A report from InfoJobs and Esade documents that in Spain, job openings in new technologies that don't require experience dropped 41 percent in 2025. The World Economic Forum reports that 40 percent of business leaders expect to reduce their workforce in departments where AI can do the work.
Recently, videos have circulated showing university students booing speakers who discuss artificial intelligence. The most prominent incident occurred at the University of Arizona, where Eric Schmidt, the former chief executive of Google, was speaking. Schmidt noted that Time magazine had named the architects of artificial intelligence as its people of the year for 2025. After pausing to acknowledge the crowd's protests, he said he understood their fear. To ease the tension, he offered that "the future is not written" and that "the people who will build it will be you." Not everyone shares his optimism.
Miguel Lucas, the global director of innovation at Llorente y Cuenca, sees a different trajectory. If fewer young people can access the job market, finding experts in specialized fields will become increasingly difficult. There will be a loss of generational talent, he argues, because many will stop pursuing education, and those who do will likely earn less. Meanwhile, as employment access shrinks and society contends with degraded digital content quality and the enormous electricity and water costs required to run AI systems, wealth is concentrating in fewer hands. The data supports his concern. A Stanford University study shows that investment in artificial intelligence surged even further in 2025. Yet the profits "are not being distributed equitably." The development of the most advanced systems remains "highly concentrated in a small group of companies" whose reputations continue to deteriorate. The question now is whether the anger Trazzi senses will translate into meaningful change, or whether the machinery of technological acceleration will simply continue, leaving a generation behind.
Notable Quotes
The future is not written. The people who will build it will be you.— Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google, speaking at the University of Arizona
We want to maintain control of our lives and our freedom.— Trazzi, founder of Stop the AI Race
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does a French activist's letter matter enough to mention in the first sentence? What did he actually say?
He didn't say it publicly—he wrote privately to Demis Hassabis at DeepMind. We don't know the exact words, but Trazzi believes it contributed to Hassabis's statement about supporting a coordinated pause. The point is that one person's voice, even from outside the industry, seemed to register with someone inside it. That's why Trazzi kept going.
But Hassabis's pause never happened, right?
Correct. And Trazzi knew it wouldn't. That's what makes Stop the AI Race different from just hoping tech leaders will self-regulate. He's organizing people in the streets because he doesn't believe the industry will pause on its own.
The students booing Eric Schmidt—are they angry at him specifically, or at what he represents?
At what he represents. Schmidt was saying the future isn't written, that young people will build it. But students are hearing: "You'll have to build it, but we're already building it without you, and you won't have jobs when we're done." The contradiction is what stings.
Is there any scenario where this works out well for young people?
The sources don't offer one. Even the optimists like Schmidt are vague about it. The concrete data—41 percent fewer entry-level tech jobs, 40 percent of employers planning cuts—suggests the transition will be painful. Whether it leads somewhere better depends on choices that haven't been made yet.
What does the Pope's encyclical actually say about this?
We don't have the text yet—it's being released this week. But the reporting suggests he's been warning about AI's impact on critical thinking, justice, and employment. He's framing it as a dignity issue, not just an economic one. That's a different language than what tech companies use.
Why does wealth concentration matter if everyone's standard of living rises?
Because it's not rising for everyone. The sources show that while AI investment exploded, the benefits aren't being shared. Young people are losing job access. Digital content quality is degrading. The electricity and water costs are enormous. Meanwhile, a small group of companies is getting richer. That's not a rising tide.