Optimism is found offline.
Club Dread
Most Americans are now more concerned than excited about AI, with fears ranging from a dead internet to total obsolescence.
Not just technophobes, even 43% of optimizers are ready to step back as devices become overbearing, spawning a counterculture at odds with technological progress.
With AI straining mental health, relationships, creativity, and intelligence, Neoluddites are embracing the physical world as refuge and simpler pleasures as wellness pursuits.
Wellness Anthropology
Arguing not all tech is good, Neoluddites believe what makes us human makes us healthy.
Owning space AI can’t replicate, they’re acquiring hands-on skills, preserving cultural traditions, and seeking meaningful IRL experiences, making offline ingenuity the new flex.
Slowness. While new rites push the pace, younger generations are also adopting less “productive” hobbies. Searches for pen pals have jumped 35%, while snail-mail circulations like Lucky Duck Mail Club and The Tiny Post swell to thousands of subscribers.
A product of dopamine culture, 40% of Americans failed to finish a book last year, leading literary clubs to revive reading for fun — from low-key Seen Library gatherings in LA to Dua Lipa’s London Literature Festival this fall.
Craft. Spinning up gardening swaps and knitting circles, crafting meetup attendance is growing 3x faster than event volume. Putting a roof on it, outdoors community Usal Project opened a physical space for workshops, chess, and lo-fi listening.
Preserving lost skills and artisanship, Wild Tales’ hybrid learning community goes hands-on with foraging, breadmaking, and folk tradition.
Wonder. Inspiring awe, outdoor experiences are helping people feel alive. From celestial gatherings with Star Party Silver Lake and This Is Nature’s men’s retreats rooted in horsemanship to Pacific Town Club’s fishing trips, rewilding lets the tech-stressed connect to something bigger.
Punchline: More than screentime hacks and an occasional camping trip, Neoluddites are speed-checking futurism with lessons from the past.
