New college grads are booing AI-laced graduation speeches, a sign of deeper tech unease. In a 3,100-word blog post, Microsoft’s Brad Smith tries to calm the storm, but it feels like trying to convince teenagers climate change is real.
The backlash isn't just about AI; it's about feeling used by technology that crept into their lives without consent. Graduates see massive data centres as an ethical minefield and feel let down by tech leaders who once warned of doom before walking back their warnings.
Smith argues young people are uniquely positioned to embrace an uncertain future, but the public may be cynical. Microsoft execs, after causing this uncertainty themselves, now want to clean up the mess with vague promises to raise the bar.
The post is aimed more at tech industry insiders than angry graduates. The real issue isn’t AI’s impact, but whether those who created it can understand or address genuine concerns in a meaningful way.
