Amid growing fears of an AI-driven jobs apocalypse, a new study has found that attitudes toward artificial intelligence are increasingly diverging along generational lines, shaped in part by who is expected to be impacted first.

While working professionals currently in their 40s, 50s, and 60s are most positive about AI, Gen Z workers are relatively more pessimistic about the technology, despite being the most likely to use AI tools, according to a new research report by Glassdoor, a jobs review site.

The study found that nearly half of Gen X workers, born between 1965 to 1980, write positively about how their companies use AI as the technology’s impact is expected to create more opportunities for senior-level workers.

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About one third of Gen Z workers, the oldest of whom are in their late 20s, do not perceive AI the same way. However, a majority of both Gen Z and Gen X workers are still critical of the technology, the study noted.

The Glassdoor study’s findings align with other research, particularly as AI is widely expected to disrupt entry-level jobs first. An updated research paper from economists at Stanford University released earlier this month, suggested that AI is increasingly driving the disappearance of entry-level roles for younger workers in some fields.

In particular, the Stanford study found that employment levels for workers aged 22 to 25 years in the most ‘AI-exposed’ occupations are 19 per cent below those of their peers in fields less exposed to AI disruption. The gap between the two categories was measured at 13 per cent last year.

“This fear that we had that the inability or the unwillingness of older workers to adopt new technologies is going to make them obsolete in the workforce just hasn’t been the case with this technology, at least not yet,” Glassdoor senior economist Chris Martin was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. 

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“If you are a little more senior in your career, you are a little more insulated,” Martin added.

Other key findings

The Glassdoor analysis found that workers over 40 said that their employers were well placed to take advantage of the AI boom. Additionally, the respondents praised their bosses for providing opportunities to experiment with generative AI tools.

Experienced workers are better placed to elicit better responses from large language models (LLMs) as they have the expertise to draft precise prompts and catch AI-hallucinated inaccuracies, as per the study.

As a result, demand for experienced workers has seen some growth with job postings for senior-level roles increasing 14.7 per cent over the year prior to May 2026.

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In contrast, postings for entry-level roles have declined by 6.3 per cent over the same period, according to jobs site Indeed. Stanford researchers also found that hiring rates have fallen for entry-level workers in AI-impacted fields. They further found that the impact on the 22-25 age group has primarily manifested itself as fewer jobs, rather than lower wages.

The AI industry’s push to automate entry-level tasks such as customer support, research, and drafting marketing materials has led to younger workers’ pessimism about the advent of the technology.

But this has not stopped them from using AI tools. More than three-quarters of Gen Z have used standalone AI tools, compared to just over a third of Gen X, according to a Deloitte study.