A 30th college reunion reveals widespread midlife anxiety over AI’s impact on careers, children, and knowledge work

At his 30th college reunion, the author found conversations repeatedly returning to concerns about how LLMs are reshaping knowledge work and young adults’ futures. The essay contrasts that unease with earlier generational anxieties and pivots into nostalgia for 1990s college computing culture, including a networked Tetris-inspired game project.

The piece captures a broader shift: AI has moved from a specialist concern to a mainstream social anxiety among educated professionals. Its nostalgia for early software experimentation also highlights how today’s AI era feels less like playful technical discovery and more like a destabilizing force for work and identity.

A portentous reunion