Gen Z's Real Complaint Isn't AI—It's Employment Prospects

While tech leaders frame generational skepticism toward AI as philosophical resistance, Gen Z's actual grievance is economic: stagnant wages, gig work proliferation, and credential inflation that make entry-level employment increasingly precarious. The distinction matters because it shifts the AI adoption narrative from cultural values to material conditions. Gen Z will adopt AI tools if those tools improve their bargaining power in a damaged labor market, not because executives convince them of progress.