May 19, 2026 Former Eric Schmidt was met with boos from graduating students during a commencement speech at the University of Arizona on Sunday as he discussed artificial intelligence and its impact on the future. The negative reaction began when he acknowledged growing fears among students that AI could eliminate jobs and leave their generation facing an uncertain future.
Schmidt, who led Google for more than a decade, was addressing a crowd of roughly 10,000 graduates when he traced the evolution of modern technology – from laptops to smartphones, the internet, and social media – and how those innovations reshaped society.
He described how earlier technologies were intended to expand knowledge and opportunity but led to more complex outcomes. While tools like the internet and social platforms connected people globally, he said they also contributed to isolation and polarization. According to Schmidt, systems that were meant to strengthen public discourse instead degraded it over time.
When he shifted to artificial intelligence, the tone in the audience changed. Students began shouting and jeering as he spoke about how emerging technologies have unsettled younger generations entering the workforce.
Schmidt directly addressed those concerns, saying he understood the anxiety. He described a sense among young people that the future feels predetermined, shaped by automation, economic uncertainty, climate challenges and political instability. He called those fears “rational,” acknowledging that the pace of change has left many feeling like they are inheriting problems they did not create.
Despite the reaction, Schmidt urged graduates to take an active role in shaping how AI is used. “The question is not whether AI will shape the world. It will. The question is whether you will have shaped artificial intelligence,” he said.
He emphasized that the technology’s impact is inevitable, but its direction is not fixed. According to him, the key question is whether people will influence AI’s development or simply adapt to decisions made by others.
The response in Arizona reflects a broader discomfort with AI among younger audiences. Similar reactions have surfaced at other universities. At the University of Central Florida, students also booed a speaker discussing AI as a transformative force comparable to the Industrial Revolution. The speaker acknowledged the reaction, noting that AI had become a deeply polarizing topic in a short period of time.
Public sentiment data supports this tension. Research from the Pew Research Center shows that about half of Americans feel more concerned than excited about the growing role of AI in daily life. These concerns are often tied to job displacement, particularly in sectors where automation can replace knowledge-based work.
Not all voices in the tech industry share the same outlook. Jensen Huang, speaking at a separate university event, described AI as a net positive for society. He argued that while AI will change or eliminate some jobs, it will also create new industries and opportunities, particularly for younger workers. He emphasized that individuals who learn to use AI effectively will have an advantage in the evolving job market.
