Gen Z x Generative AI [Phase 1]

Gen Z x Generative AI

Phase 1 of a new research workstream, launched by IDEO’s Play Lab, that explores what 12-25 year olds really think about the new wave of AI.

ROLE: DESIGN RESEARCHER, VIDEO PRODUCER

TEAM: WENDY WANG, MATT CALLAHAN, TAKASHI WICKES

ADVISORS: ANGEL ANNUNCIACAO, DIANA TOBEY, AND (LOTS OF) SUPPORT FROM KEREN WONG, JEREMY CHEN, NINA LAMPERT, RIDIMA RAMESH, MICHELLE LEE, AND MANY MORE!

TIMELINE: MARCH 2023 - JUNE 2024

Are Youth Ready to Embrace AI?

Project Background

Just a phase or here to stay?
We’ve all seen generative AI take over headlines as tech companies race to brand themselves as AI-powered. Before diving in head first, how do we lead with what people want—instead of what big tech thinks we should want? 

And in all of this conversation, where is the voice of Gen Z youth? They have been the most heavily impacted by social media, using technologies that weren’t initially designed for them and consequently bearing the downstream effects and harm. 

At the IDEO Play Lab, we have a team of designers and researchers focusing on global youth insights. As a “young person” and core contributor, I felt compelled to drive this exploration of Gen Z and Generative AI (and continue to do so).

Project Goals

Determine highest priority research areas and formulate research hypotheses

Understand how Gen Z feels about AI (eg. needs, concerns, trust, privacy)

Leverage my specialities in data science and social listening to create a qual/quant blended approach

Create AI prototypes to make possible futures tangible, and test them

Amplify Gen Z’s voice through purposeful storytelling and thought leadership

Methods & Design Journey

We took a hybrid, mixed-methods approach to research by blending quantitative and qualitative data.

I led the social listening research stream (TikTok data scrape), which enabled us to gain insight into the design challenge early–and fast.

This set us up for success as we crafted the design provocations and co-creation sessions.

Social Listening & Social Network Analysis

Instead of assuming the “problem” area, we wanted to craft the design challenge based on what Gen Z’s were already sharing about AI online.

Using TikAPI and Gephi, I coded a TikTok video scraper tool in Python that outputs a social network graph, visualizing online conversation, community, and connectedness.

Using the TikTok scraper, I ran a social network analysis on hundreds of hashtags.

and conducted a thematic analysis on comments from TikTok videos about AI.

DISCOVERY:

The intersection of education, productivity and AI was the dominant content theme, leading the team to form our initial research hunches about this topic. 

But in exploring the network graph and scouring comments, a deeper tension was revealed in two key areas: Creativity/Creative Expression and Relationships. 

Here, youth seemed to have a range of opinions on how AI should interfere, or fit into, their lives.

✦ 
The TikTok scraper is now an internal tool that's used to keep a pulse on online trends and surface quantitative data at scale to validate or complicate our hypotheses.

[BLURRED PHOTO]

IMPACT:

Located the most provoking courses of exploration for the team

Determined what AI concepts we should create

Enabled us to thoroughly and nimbly scope the design challenge

Brought focus to our qualitative sessions with youth, instead of discovering this info through qual sessions then doing another round to get deeper

Insights

📣 CRAFTING ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS AND CENTERING GEN Z VOICES AT SCALE THROUGH STORYTELLING

WE SHARE OUR INSIGHTS IN 3 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP PIECES AND INSIGHT REELS:

𝟎𝟏  IS GEN Z READY TO EMBRACE AI? IT’S COMPLICATED.

📖 Read it
📺 Watch it

I co-authored the thought leadership pieces, in addition to scripting, editing and producing the 3 insight reels.

𝟎𝟐  GEN Z TO AI: DON’T KILL MY CREATIVE VIBE

📖 Read it
📺 Watch it

𝟎𝟑  WILL AI INTERFERE WITH RELATIONSHIPS? GEN Z THINKS SO.

📖 Read it
📺 Watch it

Research Impact

STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION IMPACT:

Built a network of youth from across the country to advise on and co-design with us on this project. In Phase 2 of Gen Z x GenAI (in progress), I advocated for youth to take the lead in deciding what we work on—and what we don’t. I created surveys for our Gen Z network to choose our “how might we’s” and concepts that we develop.

STRATEGIC IMPACT:

IDEO Journal: published 3 thought leadership pieces to the IDEO Journal, with over 8,600 reads (combined)

SF Design Week: co-presented at IDEO’s experiments in AI event to over 200+ designers and practitioners

A Quick Note:

This case study covers Phase 1 of an internal project focused on youth insights.

Phase 2 is currently underway and insights will be published later this year. Always happy to talk more about the project, particularly the social listening/mixed methods approach, storytelling insights, and co-creation design.