Gen Alpha
Gen Alpha: The Kids Are Old Souls
Agency: Digitas Inc, 2022
Type: Culture and Foresight Report
What It Was
Gen Alpha grew up with iPads and garden swings.
They’re the first generation raised by TikTok, but they’re already nostalgic for “real life.”
This foresight report decoded their contradictions, uncovered their influence power, and mapped how brands could show up without getting tuned out.
Not just what they consume, but how they feel while consuming it.
Insight Snapshot
They weren’t raised on content. They were raised on overload.
Gen Alpha is fluent in dopamine but hungry for depth. They’ve seen what burnout looks like, up close, at home.
They don’t want more features. They want calm. Clarity. And brands built to last.
Key Behaviors
Selective Scrollers: They’re used to the dopamine, but want a breather.
Playful, Not Aimless: Gamers by instinct. But they like a little structure.
Old Souls: They’re not chasing the future. They’re romanticizing 2007.
Identity Editors: They don’t need labels. Just room to mix, match, and make their own meaning.
What I Did
I co-led cultural and consumer research to decode Gen Alpha before the hype hit. Mapped how parents and kids shape decisions together. Dug into education, tech, and parenting spaces to spot the real tension: hyper-digital lives with deeply analog cravings. From there, I built a foresight framework and action steps to help brands show up with relevance, trust, and long-term value, not trend-chasing.
Final Word
Gen Alpha won’t cancel your brand. They’ll just forget it exists.
If you want their trust, build something that earns a spot in their world, their group chats, their everyday.
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This page shares redacted, recreated insights. Full findings available on request.