By: Dennis Richmond, Jr.
For years, Americans over 50 have been the punchline of an increasingly outdated technology joke. They are often portrayed as people who cannot figure out smartphones, need their children to explain social media, or simply gave up trying to keep it together with a digital world moving too quickly around them. But! The latest numbers suggest something very different is happening.
According to AARP’s 2026 Tech Trends and Adults 50-Plus research, smartphone ownership among Americans 50 and older reached 90% in 2025, up dramatically from 55% in 2016. Nine out of 10 adults over 50 now use social media, while eight out of 10 stream video every week. Those figures challenge the idea that technology belongs primarily to younger generations. Maybe it was COVID?
Americans over 50 are using technology for far more than scrolling through family photographs on Facebook. They are banking online, shopping, navigating with digital maps, streaming entertainment, communicating through video calls and using apps to manage everyday responsibilities. According to AARP, the average adult over 50 uses 14 digital services and 10 different apps during a three-month period.
Even artificial intelligence, which has quickly become one of the biggest technological changes of the decade, is attracting older users. AARP reports that generative AI use among adults 50 and older increased from 9% in 2023 to 18% in 2024 before reaching 30% in 2025. Among employed adults over 50, the figure rises to 42%, suggesting that many experienced workers are adapting to AI rather than running from it.
The problem may not be whether older Americans can handle modern technology, but whether modern technology is being designed to handle an aging America. Nearly 60% of adults 50 and older believe technology is not designed with them in mind. Privacy concerns, complicated setup processes, costs and confusing interfaces remain significant barriers, while 71% express interest in technology support specifically designed for older adults.
Technology companies have a financial reason to pay attention as well. According to AARP, 71% of adults 50 and older purchased technology in 2025, spending an average of $756. This is a massive population of consumers with purchasing power, professional experience and an increasing willingness to embrace new digital tools.
The generation that remembers rotary phones, typewriters, record players and television antennas is now carrying smartphones, streaming movies and experimenting with artificial intelligence. Instead of asking whether Americans over 50 can keep up with technology, maybe Silicon Valley should be asking whether it can keep up with them. Especially if folks over 80 are driving.
Dennis Richmond, Jr. (@NewYorkStakz) is a journalist, historian, and educator from Yonkers, NY. He writes to uplift unheard voices, honor history, and inspire change.