Toshinao Sasaki's thoughts on the "digital generation gap" Tech and Future Vol.2

A series of articles asking Toshinao Sasaki about the future of technology and society.

The theme of the second issue is the ‘digital generation gap’.

The "digital generation gap" is a frequently discussed topic, with people's distance and familiarity with digital devices differing according to their age. Do you think such a "gap" actually exists in the first place?

Sasaki: Various academic studies in the past have pointed out that being elderly does not mean you are weak in IT and digital. Even the elderly can use digital tools if they need to.

On the other hand, it is true that many older people are resistant to new technologies. I think this is largely due to the influence of mass media such as television, which tends to ‘incite fear’ of new things.

For example, when AI becomes widespread, commentators say things like ‘humans may be dominated’. So I think there is a tendency for older people, who have a high affinity for television, to be easily influenced by such information.

However, the number of people who get information from television is decreasing, and people in their 30s and 40s are now mainly using the internet. So I think this is not an ‘age’ issue but a ‘generation’ issue.