Graduations hit turbulence as crowds boo AI talks

audiences boo – Across multiple campuses, commencement audiences have responded with boos when speakers mention AI—while a separate AI malfunction at Glendale Community College disrupted the reading of graduates’ names. The incidents are playing out against a tougher job-mark

Graduation is supposed to feel like momentum—families in the seats, caps in the air, speeches built to send students into the next chapter. This year, that script has been interrupted.

At the University of Central Florida. Gloria Caulfield. vice president of strategic alliances for the Orlando-based company Tavistock. began telling the graduating class at the University of Central Florida’s College of Arts and Humanities and its Nicholson School of Communication and Media that “the rise of artificial intelligence is the next industrial revolution.” The crowd didn’t just disagree. It erupted into boos strong enough that Caulfield paused.

“OK, I struck a chord! May I finish?” Caulfield said in surprise. Fast Company reached out to UCF, which declined to comment on the moment.

UCF wasn’t alone.

At Middle Tennessee University, the graduating class reacted similarly when Scott Borchetta, CEO at Big Machine Records, said, “AI is rewriting production as we sit here.” When the crowd started making its distaste clear, he pushed back: “Deal with it. Like I said, it’s a tool.”

A representative for Middle Tennessee University later said. “We understand and remain compassionate about our students’ concerns and questions about AI affecting their careers.” The representative added that “Scott Borchetta encouraged MTSU students to explore AI as a tool to enhance their knowledge and storytelling. and reminded them that human creativity will always be the most important thing. not the platform or system.”.

Even high-profile warnings weren’t exempt.

On Sunday, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt was booed when he brought up AI during his speech at the University of Arizona. The reaction started the moment he said “AI,” and Schmidt continued anyway, trying to make his point over the noise.

“It will touch every profession, every classroom, every hospital, every laboratory, every person and every relationship you have,” Schmidt said. “I know what many of you are feeling about that.”

As the boos persisted, he acknowledged the response directly: “I can hear you. There is a fear.” Fast Company reached out to the University of Arizona but did not immediately hear back.

AI disruption clouds an already-cloudy job market

The pattern matters because it lands at the exact moment students are most sensitive to their future.

It seems clear that much of the 2026 graduating doesn’t want to hear about AI, which makes sense given that the job market for new grads is tough, and many likely believe AI is at least one factor.

Gen Z’s distaste for AI is becoming well-documented. According to new research from GoTo, Gen Z workers, more than other generations, largely feel that AI is making them dumber. Forty-six percent of Gen Z workers felt this way compared to 39% overall.

That skepticism isn’t staying on the sidelines of conversation, either. At Glendale Community College (GCC), an AI system that was being used to read graduate names malfunctioned.

GCC president Tiffany Hernandez tried to explain what was happening as the audience reacted quickly. “Here’s what is happening. We’re using a new AI system as our reader,” Hernandez said as the audience booed. “Yep, yep. So that is a lesson learned for us,” Hernandez added.

In a statement to AZ Family, GCC apologized for the AI glitch. “[There] was a technical issue that impacted the reading of some graduate names,” the statement read. “While the issue was corrected during the ceremony. we are sorry for the disruption it caused during what should have been a celebratory moment for our graduates and their families.”.

But the statement didn’t go as far as spelling out whether the school would stop using AI during ceremonies. “We are incredibly proud of all our graduates and are taking steps to ensure an issue like this does not occur again,” it said.

For speakers heading into the rest of this commencement season, the message is emerging in real time: AI isn’t arriving as a neutral topic. It’s landing as a spark—boos, pushback, and in at least one case, a technical failure during the most ceremonial part of the day.

AI graduation commencement speeches boos University of Central Florida Middle Tennessee University Big Machine Records Scott Borchetta Tavistock Gloria Caulfield Eric Schmidt University of Arizona Glendale Community College Tiffany Hernandez GoTo research Gen Z job market