I’m kicking off a new series called Make Thoughts Themes. Every Friday, I’ll round up the news stories I’ve been keeping an eye on that might be worth your attention too.
This week: shopping is getting handed to bots, Gen Z is trading big milestones for spontaneous trips, and people want proof a human made the thing. Plus a chart on our sinking faith in food safety.
The shopper is now a bot
TikTok, DoorDash, and Kroger are adding AI discovery, shopping assistants, and one-click checkout. Meanwhile, websites are deciding whether to let those agents in at all. If AI agents start choosing products, brands need to be easy for them to find and trust.
TikTok to add AI-powered discovery and one-click checkout · Retail Dive
How Kroger, Giant Eagle and DoorDash are building their agentic AI assistants · Modern Retail
The next hurdle for AI agents: getting websites to let them in · TechCrunch
Gen Z trades milestones for moments
Eight in ten Gen Z workers now earn money outside their main job, and 83% have put off a major financial goal, according to a new Goldman Sachs survey. Nearly four in ten name housing as their biggest obstacle to saving. So the money goes to things they can enjoy now. Gen Z takes spontaneous trips far more often than travelers overall, and half would skip meals out to get the next trip on the calendar sooner.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management 2026 Retirement Survey · Goldman Sachs
Gen Z’s new American Dream: Skip the mortgage, book the flight · Fortune
Owning a Home Feels Out of Reach, So Gen Z Is Spending Big in Another Area · Entrepreneur
Forget jet-setting. ‘Lore-tripping’ is the weird new way Gen Z is traveling · Fast Company
Proof of human is the new premium
People say they hate AI slop, and they keep using AI every day. Meanwhile, LibreOffice now sells “no AI” as a feature, and creative shops are fighting slop with real people on camera. As more of the feed gets automated, showing the human hand behind the work is turning into a trust signal.
People really hate AI, so why can’t they get enough? · MIT Technology Review
LibreOffice says ‘no AI’ is now a software feature · TechCrunch
Red Antler-owned Creator Studio Wants to Fight AI Slop With UGC · Adweek
Chart of the week
Gallup’s new poll finds just 47% of Americans have a great deal or fair amount of confidence in the federal government to keep the food supply safe. That’s a record low, down from 85% in 2004. For brands, safety and sourcing claims carry more weight with shoppers right now than they have in decades.
That’s the week! Tell me what you’re watching.