Gen Alpha pick side hustles over brain rot
New research has found Gen Alpha to be more productive with their screen time than older generations, as they avoid time-wasting ‘brain rot’ content far more than their older peers.
Gen A teens in the USA spend 3.5 hours less on mindless doomscrolling than Gen Z each week, according to the US Online Earnings report.
Online entrepreneurship is rising – nearly half of Gen A (47.1%) is actively earning income through online side hustles, a 15% percentage point increase compared to last year.
The US Online Earnings report, conducted by the all-in-one platform for digital products Whop, gathered and analysed survey data from 2,002 US teens and early career starters between the ages of 12 to 28.
Gen A teens spend a fifth (20.3%) of their screen time on side hustle activity, earning money through their digital channels. This is a percentage point higher than Gen Z, who spend 19.5% of their screen time.
What digital side hustles are most popular?
- 20.1%: trading new or vintage clothes online
- 14.1%: income from streaming video games
- 13.1%: video game tournament prizes
- 10.5%: earning through social content creation or ‘clipping’ videos
- 9.1%: brand sponsorship deals for their social media accounts
This motivation is seen in their overall career goals, and suggests major disruption to the college to career pipeline. Over half (51.5%) of Gen A intends to make a career out of their side hustle.
Brett Malinowski, Marketing Director at Whop, says: “Social media raised this generation, so making money on the internet is now the norm. When you grow up watching YouTube creators and Twitch streamers living lavish lifestyles, it’s only natural to want to be part of that. Many of today’s biggest creators started posting content when they were teenagers – and now they realise that this is a way for them to make real money.
“Seeing podcasts featuring 16-year-olds making millions online completely changes your perception of what’s possible.
“We’re witnessing a generation of kids who genuinely believe they can do anything.”
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