Gen Z’s AI situationship …
Plus: 🐌 MBTA’s biggest slowpoke
It’s Thursday, Boston.
✈️ This woman NEEDS to be the next voice of Logan. If the contest winner doesn’t have a thick Boston accent, we’re rioting.
👀 What’s on tap today:
- Reparations report got axed
- MBTA’s biggest slowpoke
- Utah 🤝 Fenway
Up first…
EDUCATION
AI is testing recent grads
Illustration: Kelly Chan.
Gen Z’s AI relationship status: It’s complicated. Demand for AI skills is up in Boston’s entry-level job market, but despite being some of AI’s most frequent and savvy users, recent grads aren’t loving it.
Here’s what to know:
📈 Local job listings are leaning *heavy* on AI skills. Mentions of AI *tripled* within a year on Indeed, and more than a third of junior-level roles now call for using AI tools for tasks like reports, slide decks, and even emails (it was only at ~10% last fall).
😠 Ironically, Gen Z is very pessimistic about AI. Yes, Gen Z does use AI tools more than any other adult age group (especially at work), but they’re also the most concerned about its impact on jobs.
👀 And we can’t blame them for thinking the worst … Demand for junior-level employees dropped 35% between 2023 and 2025. And careers that are most vulnerable to AI had steep entry-level cuts. That said, the rate of interns getting hired full-time rose this year, after low offer rates for the last five years. And employers are projected to hire more.
🎓 To get ahead, a whole lotta students are switching majors. Nearly 40% have changed or thought about changing their major, field, or courses because of AI. Not to mention, more AI majors are popping up at colleges and universities in the Boston area … *cough cough* Northeastern …
🍅 Put it all together, and you’ve got young grads throwing proverbial tomatoes. Remember when students booed pro-AI commencement speakers?
🤷 An unfortunate truth: The better at AI you are, the more valuable you’re considered at work (for now). We’re not just talking about prompting and asking questions. Employers value young people who can use it for bigger things like data analysis or coding models. And experts say that those who immerse themselves in the tech will probs move up the corporate ladder … and those who don’t might be at higher risk of getting laid off. Yikes.
🤔 Wanna dig deeper? Here’s the full Globe story.
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CITY
Quick & dirty headlines
Image: David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe.
❤️🩹 Postpartum mental health in Mass. might get a boost. Following the Lindsay Clancy trial, Gov. Maura Healey just pitched investing $2 million into the Welcome Family program, which sends nurses to visit and help new mothers after giving birth. They’d assist with things like breastfeeding, newborn care, mental health, and even caregiver referrals. For context, the program serves ~3,000 births per year (there are ~68,000 births/year in Mass.) — and currently receives no state funding but relies on federal dollars.
Say goodbye to one of Boston’s reparations reports … The City of Boston just scrapped it after one of the researchers was accused of factual errors and miscited credits in her own book on slavery. ICYMI: This report had been in the works for years to review the city’s history with slavery and its impacts, and evaluate potential reparations for Black Bostonians … and it was nearly three years overdue. City officials didn’t say if it’ll find another team for the report, but its $335K in funding will still be used for Boston’s Task Force on Reparations.
🚇 And MBTA slowpoke of the year is … Enter: the Pokey-Schleppie Awards. Transit Matters just put out its annual list of the slowest (Pokey) and most “bunched” (Schleppie) buses. The one that crawled the most? The SL4, which goes between South Station and Nubian Square, averaged at 6.09 mph and was somehow worse than the 1 bus (but not by much). Then there’s the 32, which ranked highest at 17.1% for bunching up (when buses aren’t spaced out so there’s huge waiting gaps). Congrats?
🧘 Get fit fo’ free this fall. Boston’s FREE Fall Fitness Series just kicked off this week! The city is hosting different workouts *every* day, including yoga, Zumba, and line dancing, across neighborhoods through Oct. 17 (except for Indigenous Peoples’ Day). Start off strong with a morning walking group, yoga, or Dancehall bootcamp (or all of the above!) on Sept. 19. See the full schedule here. Note: You must register for each.
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT
Your pizza pilgrimage starts this weekend
🍕 Last call before Boston’s biggest pizza party. City Hall Plaza is about to transform into the Boston Pizza Festival, loading in over 30 pizzerias (ovens included!) to sling slices for thousands of hungry guests. Advance tickets are still $10 for entry plus two slices, but that price climbs to $15 once the festival kicks off at 11 a.m., so lock it in now! Save $5 HERE with code BSIDE5.
Start an annual Membership here to get the discount code!
ONE LAST THING
Turn right on Pedroia
Image: Courtesy of EDGEhomes. Illustration: Kelly Chan.
Ahhhh, Herriman, Utah, home of sprawling suburbs and … the Boston Red Sox?
Yep, this Utah city has a whole neighborhood filled with streets named after Red Sox players. See: Pedroia Street, Varitek Drive, Pesky Lane, and Eovaldi Avenue.
But like … why Utah??? Well, Brandon Parr, the project manager behind the development, is a lifelong Sox fan. When he proposed the project, he chose to honor a bunch of his fave players he grew up watching.
Fun fact: Quirky street names in the greater Salt Lake region aren’t hard to come by, with references to “The Lord of the Rings” (Gandalf Drive), Marvel (Hemsworth Way), and even “Wayne’s World” (Wayne’s World Drive).
Why didn’t Parr choose bigger legends like Williams or Ortiz? Apparently, there can’t be duplicate street names. Parr said that Yastrzemski Street might be on the table in the future … but it’d be a pain for mail carriers lol.
— Written by Kelly Chan and Emily Schario
💡 Thanks for reading! Petition for Tolle Terrace???
💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, Brandeis University, for supporting local journalism and giving Boston students the tools they need to build better futures.
🍎 The results are in: 40% of readers prefer their apples as it is. One reader even wrote: “I like my apples how I like my *redacted* natural, thick, and juicy.” … maybe we should text him.
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