By The Daily Caller (U.S.) | Created at 2026-09-14 19:31:49 | Updated at 2026-09-25 03:35:50
1 week ago
The New York Times asked several 10-year-old Americans to predict what life might be like in 2050, when they are 34. Although some answers were glib and optimistic, others were surprisingly dystopian, painting a bleak future marked by endless wars, political upheaval, AI disruptions and high prices.
One 10-year-old from Gainesville, Florida, told The Times that “there’s bound to be a war” sometime in the future.
“The war against Iran right now is bound to spark a couple more wars. I really hope it doesn’t start World War III,” he said. (RELATED: Anthropic CEO Urges Industry To Pace Itself Following String Of Runaway, Close-Call Incidents)
He added that he thinks there will be more poor people than rich, things will cost more and the world will continue “becoming more like survival of the fittest.”
A girl from Denver said that AI will cost many people their jobs, which will lead to “lots of outrage” and protests.
“Higher-class citizens will start owning robot butlers,” she said, before warning, “I feel like with the rise of robot butlers, humans will start to lose competence and basic everyday skills.”
Twin sisters from Rutherford, New Jersey, also had a negative view of AI and technology.
“Rich people are going to read paper books, but not regular people,” one sister said. “You know how really old things are more valuable?”
She even predicted that Mount Rushmore would “fall” because “someone’s going to bomb it or something.”
Her sister believes future Americans will be able to pick and choose what their babies look like using “artificial baby labs,” and that people will continue becoming more and more engrossed by screens.
“I don’t think people will interact with each other as much. Kids won’t know what it’s like to live without screens. I mean, I don’t, either, but still,” she said.
A boy from La Grange, Illinois, predicted that America would become a monarchy and that states would eventually secede from the Union because “prices are going to skyrocket.”
“There might be a new way to elect a president. It might be how a king works, like it just passes on through generations,” he said.
Several kids interviewed by The Times were far more optimistic, however. One seemed to welcome the idea of drones delivering him pizza. Another girl looked forward to Root Beer perfume and possibly living in an underwater mansion. (RELATED: Homebuyers, Consumers About To Pay Even More As Key Indicator Reaches Grim Milestone)
“I want to be an architect, designing homes underwater — coral-friendly hotels and apartments and homes,” she said. “They’ll have underwater taxis, too. Or you could swim. That would be like walking.”
One girl said that each month, there will be “big America parties” for everyone over the age of 16.
“You meet each other, and then you become in love. But make sure you’re from the same place, because long-distance relationships never work,” she said.
Another girl predicted the rise of new domestic pets, such as foxes, and another boy from Queens said that, just as Americans were incentivized to pioneer the Western frontier in the 19th century, this century could see Americans being paid to settle in space because the population has grown too large.
The most optimistic of them all was a boy from Western Springs, Illinois. He predicted that people would be much kinder, that wars would end completely, and dinosaurs would return to roam the Earth.
He also predicted $3.99 coffee and lower taxes. Wouldn’t that be the dream?
