OnlyFans and AI training: why gen Z doesn’t care where our money comes from

Young people are experiencing ‘production nihilism,’ a growing indifference to the nature and origin of their work due to the breakdown of the traditional income-production function. Faced with insecure jobs, unaffordable housing, and deferred life goals, they are embracing ‘polyworking’ and side hustles, prioritizing immediate benefits like autonomy and identity over long-term aspirations.

This shift is seen as an active reclaiming of agency, detaching from the failing neoliberal ‘good life’ fantasy and improvising new values. It’s a proactive response to an economic system that no longer delivers on its promises, leading to a focus on maximizing present value with available assets.

The article draws parallels to Jean-Luc Godard’s film ‘Two or Three Things I Know about Her,’ where a housewife prostitutes herself to maintain a desired lifestyle, as a precursor to the gig economy. However, it highlights that Gen Z reclaims this image as subjects, actively shaping their economic interactions rather than being passive objects.

• Financial nihilism describes the reaction to the dissolution of linear wealth paths, with money being thrown at prediction markets, meme stocks, and cryptocurrencies.
• Production nihilism, a new term, describes the growing indifference of younger generations to the types of work they participate in and where they earn their income.
• The traditional work ethic, fueled by the need for stable employment and long-term goals, is weakening as young people face job insecurity and unaffordable housing.
• Many young people are engaging in ‘polyworking,’ taking on multiple jobs, including training AI, creating ‘YouTube empires,’ and working on platforms like OnlyFans, often prioritizing autonomy and identity.
• Side hustles have become common, with Gen Z reporting higher rates than boomers, functioning as identity work while day jobs serve as financial anchors.
• This shift represents a transition in the economic relationship with the future, where the inability to attain a prosperous future leads to a focus on ‘maxing’ for the present.
• Gen Z reclaims the image of exploitation, not as helpless objects but as subjects actively engaged with the economy, detaching from the neoliberal ‘good life’ fantasy.
• The concept of ‘high-agency’ individuals is presented as a Silicon Valley idea that may not represent true agency but rather another way to adapt to an economy with fewer opportunities.
  https://uk.layer3.press/articles/dd1612fe-4534-4a2a-81db-c4b8533ae788