又中又英 | Zoomers and doomers | 褚簡寧

　　It is an age-old tradition of American colleges to invite a distinguished person to give the keynote speech during a graduation ceremony. Such a speech, formally known as a commencement address, celebrates the achievement of graduating students and inspires them as they move to the next chapter of their lives. But something unusual happened at some commencement addresses for the graduating class of 2026. The graduates booed loudly at speakers who advocated the rapid growth of AI. One commencement speaker at a Florida university was astonished by the loud booing when she told graduates that AI was the next Industrial Revolution.

　　Graduates who booed at speakers supporting AI belong to Generation Z, or Gen Z, an age group of people born between 1997 and 2012. They are informally called Zoomers. The Wall Street Journal described the opposition to AI as an American rebellion which is gaining steam. If something is gaining steam, it means it is increasing in strength, momentum, or popularity. The newspaper quoted one US senator as saying people feel they are under siege by AI. To be under siege means to be surrounded by an armed force. But it can also mean to be under a lot of pressure, such as by AI.

　　Graduating Zoomers fear AI will replace them as they enter the job market. But polls show other people also mistrust AI, fear it will reshape the job market, and that AI will increase energy costs. Many US companies have already cut thousands of jobs, including Meta which owns social media services such as Facebook and WhatsApp. A top OpenAI official described AI opponents as doomers. A doomer is someone with a very pessimistic view of the world.

＊　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊　＊

　　美國各大院校邀請一位卓越人士在畢業典禮作專題演講，是個由來已久的傳統。正式被稱為commencement address 的這些畢業演說，是為慶賀畢業生學有所成，並啟發他們邁進人生新一章。然而，在2026年畢業班的某些畢業致詞（commencement addresses）期間，卻發生了些不平常的事情。當佛羅里達一所大學的一位畢業典禮致詞嘉賓跟畢業生說，人工智能是下一場工業革命時，卻迎來震耳的噓聲，令她大感驚訝。

　　那些向支持人工智能的講者發出噓聲的畢業生，屬於Generation Z或說Gen Z，是出生於1997至2012年間的Z世代，也俗稱Zoomers。《華爾街日報》形容這種對人工智能的抵抗，是種美國式的反叛，現正gaining steam－－若某事is gaining steam，意即它的勢頭正在增強、蓄勢待發，或愈發盛行。報章引述一名美國參議員指，人們感到他們被人工智能所包圍（under siege）。To be under siege是指被武裝力量重重包圍，但它也可以指被圍攻而感到巨大的壓力，例如受制於人工智能。

　　畢業的Z世代（Zoomers）擔憂當他們進入職場時，會被人工智能所取代。然而民調顯示，其他人也不信任人工智能，擔心它會重塑就業市場，而且人工智能亦會增加能源成本。許多美國公司已經裁減了數以千計的職位，包括擁有臉書和WhatsApp等社交媒體服務的Meta公司。OpenAI一名高級主管，形容人工智能的對手為doomers。A doomer是對世界抱持悲觀態度，非常頹喪的人。

[email protected]
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻