The Coronazoom Generation and the Coming-of-Age of AI

What if the first true AI generation is also the first to face collective identity loss? Inspired by Anthony Eichberger’s microgen series and shaped through the MEing of Life lens.

“The children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.” -attributed to Socrates, ~400 BCE

It’s funny how, every time the world shifts, it’s the youngest who are blamed, or at least, misunderstood. But what if we stopped criticizing and started listening to the signal behind the change?

That’s the goal of this reflection, to stop and listen to just one of our rising generations: the **Coronazoom Generation*, those born in the early 2010s, whose lives began in the shadow of the Great Recession and were shaped by lockdowns, livestreams, and looping TikTok reels. Anthony Eichberger gave them the name Coronazooms, *and in doing so, he spotlighted a rare, resonant cohort. A microgeneration born just as the collective world is mastering a major identity crisis.

A Generational Mirror Moment

In our own research project, *The MEing of Life*, we study how human development mirrors cultural evolution. It’s a symbolic framework, but it’s proven surprisingly predictive. Each stage of growth from infant to elder, has its own core fears and challenges. And they seem to echo across civilizations.

In this model, the Coronazooms are a generation wrapping up adolescence and crossing into our collective Young Adult stage on the human timeline. Adolescence marks the building and young adult marks the mastery phase where the driving fear is:

*The Fear of Alienation, Rejection, and Social Exile* (“Who am I if I don’t belong?”) It’s the fear of not being liked, unseen, not heard, basically feeling invisible (that’s why Violet in the Incredibles has invisibility). It’s the fear of rejection as in colleges and jobs. It’s the fear of alienation and isolation and being kicked out of the group, or off the team. The feeling of being different when everyone’s pretending to be different. Think of all the fears you had as a teenager and young adult. Adolescence builds this fear and young adults attempt to conquer it. So do new nations. So does any entity forming identity for the first time. Let’s not forget that if we fail to conquer the fear before this stage (loss of autonomy~which isn’t looking too good by the way), we will not do well when we reach this one. Past fears linger and we are running out of time.*

The AI Inflection Point

By the time the Coronazooms are in their 20s and 30s around the 2040s, we’ll be deep into the era of intelligent machines. Some predict that this decade will bring the long-anticipated “singularity”: a threshold when AI becomes indistinguishable from (or superior to) human intelligence in key areas. If it does what will that feel like to a generation that’s just learning who they are?

When Gutenberg’s printing press emerged in the 15th century, it didn’t just make books. It shattered control over information. It decentralized religion. It restructured knowledge. It caused wars. ~It marked our entrance into the collective preschool and school age experience.

When the internet emerged in the late 20th century, it didn’t just connect people. It fractured institutions, rewired brains, and made reality optional. The social shifts of the 2000s weren’t just about tech, they were about identity scrambling at scale. ~It marked a point we exited elementary school and into our collective adolescence experience.

Now comes AI. Reminding us we better step up our game if we want to make it through the school of life. And it’s not just another device. It’s a mirror. A rival. A partner. A tool. A threat. A voice. A bully. A friend. It’s competition at it’s peak. It’s that point in your teen years you realize the competition isn’t just about prom dates but college acceptance and job security. We feel it way down inside us even if we can’t name it yet. The fear of rejection pops up and says, “Hi, I’m officially here”.

The Coronazooms will be the first generation raised in homes where AI is normal. Most suggest these kids will most likely have AI tutors, playmates, therapists, and bosses. They won’t remember a world without it. As they reach adulthood, they’ll be asked to answer the deepest version of the “I AM” question: If a machine can mimic everything I do… what makes me special? What makes me different? What is it to be human? Talk about an existential crisis!

Their Test, Our Test

What makes this generation’s coming-of-age unique isn’t just the tech, it’s the fear that comes with it. Adolescence and young adulthood are phases of identity anchoring. It is the transition from group-pleasing adolescent to independent being. But that transition requires testing boundaries. It requires rebellion, declaration and belonging. So what happens when those rituals are disrupted by algorithms? What happens when the group you’re trying to join is a swarm of faceless AIs? This generation may absorb AI more easily than others. But absorption isn’t mastery. The danger isn’t Skynet…it’s spiritual dislocation.

We’ve been seeing these warning signs already:

• Derealization and emotional flattening
• Hyper-fragmented identity experiments
• A swing toward extreme belonging systems (cults, digital tribes, aesthetic prisons)

It will all peak! And unless they master the fear, it’s going to be a bumpy ride into the future. But it doesn't have to be.

Possible Futures: Identity Realized

If the MEV model is right, this generation’s challenge will be belonging while maintaining selfhood. A few predictions, based on developmental mirrors:

• Rituals of realness will rise. In reaction to AI-drenched lives, there may be a movement toward physicality, imperfection, and vulnerability. Possibly, less makeup and less body shaming (fingers crossed). The idea of just being you, a human you with no filters~proof of presence.
• Belonging will be tested by algorithms. Access to groups, resources, or opportunities may be mediated by opaque systems, forcing young adults to define identity~outside the algorithm. A possible resurgence in block parties and Pinochle night. “Come in 20’s fashion” on the invitation. ‘Cell free’ parties where everyone dresses up in striped prison costumes. We might see a rise in having fun without the device.
• New archetypes will emerge. We may see storytellers, activists, and artists who specialize in reclaiming the human experience while guiding others toward meaning and presence in a mediated world. ‘Stepping back in time’ themed restaurants or small towns that keep the ‘old feeling alive’.

These ideas are just examples to spark future discussions. It isn’t until after we complete* our young adult stage that we begin to drop this fear and accept ourselves.

Closing: A Fear Worth Mastering

This isn’t a dystopian prophecy. It’s a developmental one. The Coronazooms are stepping into a world that will challenge their very sense of being ~ just as they’re forming it. Not just as individuals, but as a collective. Every generation has its crucible. Some faced war. Some faced plague. This one faces replication.

If they can navigate this stage and master the fear of being unneeded, unseen, rejected, or alienated, they might become the generation that redefines what it means to be human. By transcending comparison. By becoming real in a world full of imitation. When we can say, “I’m just a plain ol’ human” and be ok with that. Walking into our middle age and elder epochs with wisdom and strength instead of dependence and fear.

~The MEing of Life is a work in progress. It’s a new way to think about why we do the things we do. We invite you to consider the possibility that life is multilayered and as a collective, we are facing our adolescent and young adult fears globally. We love feedback, challenge, and especially open thought discussions. We are not experts, just curious minds who enjoy thinking for ourselves.

*Thank you Anthony for the inspiration. That was fun research to put together. I am really enjoying playing with these cusp generations.