General-Purpose Technologies Generally Do Come with Job Concerns

At least one study suggests that Millennials use artificial intelligence tools more than Generation Z. According to a survey conducted by Channel V Media, 47 percent of Millennials use generative AI, compared to 44 percent of Gen Z, 42 percent of Gen X and 32 percent of Baby Boomers.

According to that survey, Gen Z is the generation most anxious about AI and most afraid of losing its own job to it. 

source: Channel V Media 

But history might suggest such initial hesitations must simply be dealt with, as there is little, if any, precedent for people being able to opt out or avoid the impact of new general-purpose technologies. Non-adoption, like it or not, is rarely, if ever, widely possible. 

Technology	Initial worker reaction	Who tended to adopt fastest?	What happened to the "avoiders"?	Strategic lesson
Steam power	Fear of mechanization and displacement; Luddites famously attacked machinery in some industries	Firms and workers whose jobs could exploit mechanization	Avoiding machines did not prevent mechanization; occupations and industries changed	You couldn't opt out of the production system
Electricity	Initially viewed as an industrial substitute for existing power systems	Firms reorganizing factories around electric motors	Firms that merely substituted electric motors for steam got less benefit than firms that redesigned production	Adoption matters, but complementary organizational change matters more
Telephone	Concerns about disruption of existing communications and occupations	Businesses and professionals with high communication needs	Nonusers increasingly faced a disadvantage in a connected economy	Network technologies reward participation
Personal computer	Significant worker anxiety about clerical/administrative automation	Younger, more educated and occupationally exposed workers disproportionately	Computer nonusers increasingly concentrated in lower-wage occupations	Avoidance could protect a particular task, but not necessarily the career
Internet	Similar fears about retail, media, travel agencies, newspapers, etc.	Younger and more educated workers initially; adoption subsequently became nearly universal	Non-adoption increasingly imposed an economic and social penalty	The technology eventually became infrastructure rather than an optional skill
GenAI	Explicit fear that the technology will eliminate one's occupation	Younger workers and highly exposed occupations are among the earliest users	Avoidance may preserve some skills temporarily but risks losing complementary AI skills	Learning to use AI may be the modern equivalent of learning the PC

In all likelihood, the data simply reflects the fact that AI is arriving, and quite possibly eliminating some entry-level jobs, just as many Gen Zers are entering the work force.