4 Min Read
American Dream Freeze, Why Starting a Business Today Beats Chasing a Paycheck, and AI’s Shopping Ick
Hello from Montréal. I’ll be speaking with Canadian business leaders today on risk, reputation, and go-forward relations with America, moderated by Conseil des relations internationales de Montréal Catherine Loubier and U.S. News & World Report ‘s CEO Eric Gertler.
One interesting number: 50. Will AI be your new financial advisor? Half of Americans (50%) say managing money without AI will soon feel outdated.
1. The Struggle to Be a First-Time Homeowner
A marathon search for a home in BKLYN is on my colleague, CSO Libby Rodney’s mind in her essay, tying new U.S. Harris Poll data on the struggle to attain the American Dream.
- What we found: Half of Americans say the cost of housing is shaping their life more than their career choices are. (Gen Z: 64%, Millennials: 62%).
- The stat you can’t ignore: The median age of the first-time homebuyer just hit an all-time high of 40, while the share of first-time buyers dropped to a record low of 21% — down 50% since 2007. And the median age of all homebuyers? Apollo’s chief economist put it at 59. In 2010, it was 39.
- What to consider: The gap between what’s needed to land a median-priced home and the average HHI is a canyon at $107k ($166k/year v. $59k/year). Today, 176 metro areas require a six-figure income to buy a home with 10% down (it was 30 in 2019).
What this means: “Housing isn’t just an expense line,” says Libby. “It’s becoming the organizing principle of an entire generation’s decisions; where they live, whether they have kids, what jobs they take, and whether they stay in this country at all.”
2. The Data Says Founders Would Do It Again
Get the degree, get the job, get the stability has been the script for decades. It was considered the responsible move, but the founders have been rewriting it for years in our new poll with Shopify.
- What we found: Founders across five global markets believe the same thing: owning a business feels more financially secure than relying on a paycheck. Not equally secure, more secure – the U.S. margin was about 2 to 1.
- The stat you can’t ignore: They’d do the same even in this economy. Nine in ten U.S. founders (89%) would start their business again in 2026
- What to consider: The reputation of a 9-5 is outlasting its reality. Across all five markets, founders – between 61 to 69% – said starting a business felt like moving toward something they wanted, not away from something unstable.
What this means: Founders across five global markets believe the same thing: owning a business feels more financially secure than relying on a paycheck. Across markets, most founders would make the same choice again. Not because it’s easy. Because it’s theirs.
3. AI’s Shopping Ick
Consumers are increasingly tapping agentic AI for their shopping needs, but the minute they feel pushed toward sponsored results, they’re out (Quad-Harris Poll).
- What we found: Nearly half of Americans (45%) have more faith in AI-powered shopping tools than in-store associates to provide unbiased recommendations.
- The stat you can’t ignore: Yet, three-quarters (75%) would trust brands less if they paid to influence AI agents – as well as lose trust in AI shopping tech itself.
- What to consider: Cut out the sponsored slop. The brands that will win consumers are “worth showing up to and smart enough to let AI take it from there,” says Libby. Four in five (81%) say a great in-store experience with a brand makes them more confident trying new products online.
What this means: “AI offers real promise for efficiency and personalized service to make life easier, but any hint that AI shopping is quietly steering users toward paid influence could confirm a fear that the system isn’t on our side,” says Heidi Waldusky, Quad SVP of Brand & Integrated Marketing.
