Recently, Reddit user u/ThyInFaMoUsKID asked r/AskReddit, "What unique problems will Gen Z have to face in the future?" Here's what some people have predicted:
1. "Privacy."
"Everything is public and there's no going back. All I know is that I don't look forward to my children digging into all the bullshittery I put on the internet."
2. "'100% plastic free' food will become the new 'high-end.'"
3. "Running out of usernames."
4. "Facial recognition will be available to everyone.
"No one will be anonymous; everyone will be searchable based on their image."
5. "Learning how to talk appropriately in a corporate or formal business setting."
6. "Severe burnout from being so scheduled.
"Most kids I know are in sports (usually something competitive), music lessons, tutoring to stay at the top of the class, clubs, activities, etc. They all started when they were a year old. That, or they're not going to have any idea how to run or schedule their own lives because their lives have been intensely scheduled for them since before they could walk."
7. "Expensive housing. Very expensive."
8. "The difficulty of writing a paper that won't be automatically flagged as plagiarized.
"We will quickly run out of all polymorphisms of common language, and it will cause many students to be unfairly flagged as plagiarists."
9. "Not having an attention span longer than a few minutes.
"They always have to be doing 'something' — usually it’s just checking their phone to see if there is a new notification. Without being able to entertain themselves, they constantly have to have someone else entertaining them, which is scary."
10. "Extreme weather.
"More flooding, more droughts, stronger storms — all in places that have historically not experienced such weather events."
11. "Suffering the replacement of white-collar workers by artificial intelligence.
"Something like what happened to Gen X'ers with blue-collar workers and automation in manufacturing."
12. "Lack of children and long-term relationships.
"We're too worried about rejection to think rationally. Not saying that there aren't exceptions, but for the most part, I think it'll be every person for themself."
13. "Lack of job security.
"Uber and others like them are pushing the paradigm toward the 'gig' economy. The result will be disposable workers."
14. "The line between intellectual property will blur to the point that we won't own anything."
15. "Struggling to make meaningful connections.
"Mostly because the pandemic has hit during a key developmental period for a lot of Zoomers, both socially and emotionally. Since life is going to take place online more than ever, it can be very isolating, which is awful for mental health."
16. And lastly, "Hating the cringey stuff the next generation comes up with."
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.