When online predictions fuel anxiety about AI

For young people entering an uncertain labor market, artificial intelligence is creating anxiety about what to study, which skills to develop and whether there will still be suitable jobs for them in the future. But this anxiety comes not only from technological change but also from the predictions, stories and advice they encounter online.

Drawing on nearly 3,000 Weibo posts, we examine how different social media voices shape young people's perceptions of AI's impact on the job market, and consider how they can respond without becoming overwhelmed by predictions about what the future holds.

Finding a first job is hard, and artificial intelligence has made it even more difficult to see the road ahead. Students wonder whether they have chosen the right major, whether their skills will still be valued, and whether entry-level jobs will still exist when they graduate.

Yet they do not experience changes in the labor market directly. Instead, they read about them through headlines, statistics, viral stories and predictions online. Social media therefore shapes not only what they know about AI, but also what they imagine their own future will look like.

In our analysis of nearly 3,000 Weibo posts about AI replacing jobs, we classified Weibo accounts into four groups based on account characteristics and verification information: ordinary users, organizational accounts, news media and key opinion leaders (KOLs). We found that ordinary users mostly posted about education and career paths. They asked what majors to choose and what training to pursue in the age of AI.

One user regretted going to graduate school after seeing how AI might automate work in her field, asking: "Can hard work still yield a viable career?"

The anxiety is personal. AI is not just an abstract technological development but something that can make years of education and preparation suddenly feel uncertain.

By contrast, registered organizations and media accounts focused more on market trends and changing demand for skills. They discussed international data, labor-market statistics and corporate investment, often translating broader trends into advice for investors and professionals.

One industry-focused account wrote that AI might not wipe out entire professions but could automate the routine work that helps junior employees learn.

Licensed news outlets wrote about "skill distillation" — the practice of extracting employees' knowledge and work routines from messages, documents and emails to create AI agents capable of performing some of their tasks.

Their coverage broadened the issue into a debate about workplace privacy and trust.

KOLs discussed AI's potential to improve efficiency while emphasizing qualities that remain distinctly human, including empathy, creativity and real-world judgment. Some posts argued that although AI can communicate in human-like ways, it has no lived experience and cannot bear moral responsibility for its decisions.

Taken together, these posts do not offer one clear forecast. Instead, they offer competing visions of the future of work.

So how can young people take changes in the labor market seriously without treating every prediction about AI as a certainty?

First, separate evidence from prediction. A post about a new AI capability does not mean an entire profession will vanish. Ask what is being replaced: a task, a junior role or a whole profession.

Second, treat social media as an arena for debate, not a reliable map of the future. Dramatic stories spread because fear and certainty draw attention. Young people should check broad claims against labor-market data, expert advice and the experiences of people working in the field.

Third, build adaptable skills instead of looking for a perfectly "AI-proof" career. Learn how to use AI while also questioning its outputs: Are they incomplete, misleading or inappropriate? Develop subject knowledge, critical thinking, communication and ethical judgment alongside technical skills.

But young people should not have to navigate this uncertainty alone. Schools can equip students with AI literacy to help them assess new technologies. Employers can preserve opportunities for young workers to gain experience as entry-level tasks change, while policymakers can protect workers' privacy and support young people as they make the transition from education to employment.

The future of work is uncertain. That is precisely why no single post, prediction or viral story should be allowed to define it.

Written by Jiapei Gu, post-doctoral fellow, Analytics/Assessment Research Centre, The Education University of Hong Kong; Hua Zhao, PhD student, Trinity Centre for Asian Studies, Trinity College Dublin; and Ming Ming Chiu, chair professor of analytics and diversity, director of the Analytics/Assessment Research Centre, The Education University of Hong Kong.