If you’re giving a commencement speech in 2026, maybe don’t mention AI

Commencement speeches featuring artificial intelligence have been met with widespread disapproval and booing from graduating students this year. Speakers at the University of Central Florida and the University of Arizona experienced this firsthand when their mentions of AI sparked negative reactions from the audience. This trend suggests a palpable unease among graduates about the future.

At the University of Central Florida, executive Gloria Caulfield was booed after declaring AI the "next industrial revolution." Similarly, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt faced boos at the University of Arizona when he told students they would "help shape artificial intelligence." In Schmidt's case, student criticism began even before his speech, fueled by unrelated allegations.

The student backlash isn't universal, as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s AI-focused speech at Carnegie Mellon was well-received. However, the general pessimism reflects broader concerns. A recent Gallup poll showed a significant drop in optimism among young Americans about finding local jobs.

This widespread apprehension isn't solely due to AI, but many students view it as "the cruel new face of hyper-scaling capitalism," according to critic Brian Merchant. The sentiment was echoed by a student who imagined booing the "next industrial revolution" if unemployed and aspiring to more than just entering prompts into an LLM. Even without explicit AI mentions, "resilience" was a recurring theme in speeches, acknowledging fears about job displacement and a fractured future.