Increased AI usage is making younger workers more afraid of saying ‘I don’t know’

• November 11, 2026

• 71% of Gen Z workers feel pressure to have checked AI before asking a question
• A survey of over 10,000 people found that the majority daren’t say “I don’t know” at work
• Almost half feel that they have to check AI before asking a question, as this is expected

A worryingly large proportion of younger workers are feeling pressured into using AI to check the answer to questions before “troubling” their colleagues, new research has claimed.

The survey from Use.AI found 71% of Gen Z employees have admitted to experiencing this pressure, compared with 44% of the 45 and older age group.

Just as bad is the news that 56% of employees feel that saying “I don’t know” is a risk since the arrival of AI. Another 49%, meanwhile, say that their colleagues or managers assume they’ve already checked AI when they ask a question.

Gatekeeping knowledge?

These results suggest a developing workplace dynamic, one in which knowledge is gate-kept and AI is the key. Rather than “waste time” by asking a question, younger employees are expected to find the answer themselves, and only dare to consult colleagues when AI draws a blank.

10,417 working adults were surveyed, with those polled based in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, as well as the EU and Latin America. Use.AI’s research could suggest that employees asking questions betray their own unpreparedness to the job – and that office politics are being disrupted by AI.

In an office dynamic, the desire to demand steps are taken before a question can be asked could be a combination of things. Yes, colleagues might be too busy to answer trivial questions where the answers can be easily referenced, but the demand to “check AI” could also be a power play.

Gatekeeping in the office is never constructive, but invariably happens, whether to restrict sensitive knowledge or other employees’ ability to progress. “Have you checked AI” could be interpreted as just another way to assert seniority (whether that exists or not) and the pressure experienced by the Gen Z cohort may reflect this.

Struggling colleagues

Checking AI or not, younger team members still trying to establish their positions should be supported, not pressured into using AI. Taking a new role in a new organizations is difficult, whether the role is familiar or not.

Matthew Freire, Managing Director of Use.AI, says “A question asked openly can reveal a misunderstanding that several people share. When everyone resolves their doubts privately, that pattern becomes harder to detect. An organization can get faster at producing answers while losing sight of where its people consistently struggle to understand the work.”

When the expectation and pressure leads to employees pretending to know something that they don’t (37%) simply to avoid looking stupid, then it could be argued that defaulting to AI is damaging for morale.

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