Hello everyone and welcome to our newsletter on all things Gen Z.

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We have some exciting questions for you at the end of this opener . . .

But first: We have chatted regularly about artificial intelligence (the generative kind) and Generation Z. What large language models enable us to do as citizens and businesses - and how the next generation will use them to generate new opportunities - are two of the mega-trends of the next 50 years. Mega-trends are issues that change tides, not just create choppy waves which come and go.

Unfortunately, many of us focus on the waves - spectacular but transient - rather than the tides.

Much of this mega-trend conversation is brought together in an interview about Gen Z and generative artificial intelligence. One stat leapt out at us both - 60% of Gen Z in the US believe they will launch their own company “during their lifetime”. And that is connected to the AI conversation and the perceived increase in monetisation possibilities.

We can all be little Elon Musks now.

In the UK, the “entrepreneurial spirit” is similarly positive - from side-hustle culture to the number of young people already running their own business. Even if you run a large corporation, how do you allow for pockets of entrepreneurial elan within your firm? The next generation of employees (the zentrepreneurs) will increasingly demand it.

And now the questions, people! As promised, ahem, some weeks ago, we would love your feedback on this newsletter, what’s in it and when it’s delivered. We have a big “addition” we would also like your thoughts on. Click here to find out what that is and answer all the lovely qs.

We are both, literally, very excited.

Small bar culture . . .

We have touched before on the rise of sobriety for young people in the UK and US. And, post-COVID, many other countries have seen fundamental changes in how we socialise. In India, young people are drinking, but it’s a different world, particularly for women. Many are opting for crafted cocktails over shots, and enjoy socialising with a small tribe rather than searching for a big party. In Hong Kong, binge drinking is on the decline, with some Gen Zers saying the pandemic and rowdy boozing behaviours have turned them away. And in Japan, the national tax agency is running campaigns to try and get young people to drink more - to boost the economy.

 . . . but still feeling a bit FOMO

We know that dabbling in the stock market is a “thing” for Gen Z. In 2023, almost 90% of Gen Z investors said they bought, sold or withheld investments in response to rising prices and interest rates. But not all fingenz are cool-headed. 41% of Gen Zers in the US and Canada cited FOMO (fear of missing out) as a reason they play the market - there is something emotional about “money” and what your friends and social circles are engaging in. And that may have more effect on our behaviour than a desire to show our financial smarts.

And we need to slow down . . .

For years we’ve worried in our wonderful media industry about the death of printed newspapers as everything pivoted to digital. But could Gen Z revive the retro format? Despite young people mainly getting their news from social media, there’s a growing interest in physical media. On TikTok, @kelscruss runs an account sharing summaries of stuff she’s read in the New York Times. “Our bodies are so overstimulated”, she says. “Newspapers are an opportunity to slow down.” Amen to that, as we say at Get to Know.

 . . . and remember the joy of reading

BookTok, of course! For the uninitiated, BookTok refers to the huge creator movement that is discussing books on TikTok - whether its book club-esque debates, or roundups of books to read based on different criteria (for the beach, for hopeless romantics, for people in their twenties, etc). BookTok is fuelling book sales, and in this cool listicle you can find out who are the next generation of fiction fans at Waterstones BookFest.

And finally…

63%

… of millennials and Gen Z prefer to watch TV with subtitles. They say it helps them concentrate and understand strong accents more easily.

And given that one of us is from London and the other Manchester (huge in UK terms) maybe we could do with subtitles in Get to Know towers…

Have a lovely weekend everyone, particularly with Labour Day ahead for the US…

How can we help?

In my many travels and conversations, I’m increasingly talking to CEOs, executives and civil society leaders wanting to better understand the next generation of consumers and the next generation of employees. Gen Z is putting pressure on us all to transform in fascinating ways, and many of us are asking questions about how to cater for younger workers and future proof our organisations.

If this sounds like you, we’d be keen to have a chat and see if TNM can help. From our own content production to work we have done, for example, with The Oliver Wyman Forum, we have a raft of insights and data which can support you. We work closely with a number of global organisations – helping with high-impact story-telling, digital media, internal communications, through to employee benefits, HR and working structures.

Email me direct and all of us at TNM look forward to speaking further.

Kamal Ahmed
Editor-in-Chief and Co-founder
The News Movemen