Gen Beta Needs a Rebrand

An exceptional generation should get an exceptional name—and “Beta” isn’t it.

Credit: Maxim Ibragimov/Shutterstock

Generation Beta needs a rebrand, and they haven’t even been born yet.

That’s right, the market research firm McCrindle just announced the arrival of Generation Beta, whose members will be born from 2025 to 2039. According to McCrindle, this generation will make up 16 percent of the global population by 2035, and they will likely live into the 22nd century. Babies born in 2024 are now the youngest members of Generation Alpha—lucky them. Gen Beta just doesn’t have the same ring to it. 

Gen Alpha evokes courage, leadership, and strength. It’s the first letter of the Greek alphabet, after all. Beta is the second letter of the Greek alphabet, yes, but that doesn’t necessarily make it the best fit for this upcoming generation. Thanks to Internet memes, goofy comedians, and the modern world’s incel problem, the name “Gen Beta” evokes weakness, infirmity, and passivity. And of course, long before “beta male” was the punchline of a joke, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World divided the gray-wearing Alphas, who were the most intelligent members of society, from the maroon-wearing Betas, who always played second fiddle. 

Do you want your children to grow up to become cowering soyboys? Low-testosterone Try Guys? Cousin Greg from Succession? Then embrace the name Generation Beta. But if you believe in nominative determinism even a little bit, join me in rebranding the children of tomorrow.

This issue’s a little bit personal for me. I have two children born during the Generation Alpha years—2022 and 2024—but I’m not ready to accept that all of my future progeny will be assigned the label of “Generation Beta.” In a blog post full of marketing gobbledygook, McCrindle explained their rationale: Generations X, Y, and Z closed out the 20th century. Generations Alpha, Beta, and Gamma will start off the 21st century. 

“Just as categorising generations comes from the domain of social science rather than popular culture, so naming them is best done scientifically,” the research firm says. “Other approaches to naming generations, using terms such as ‘millennials,’ often define a generation around a single event and have vague birth ranges, leading to subjective analysis.”

Subjective analysis? Vague birth range? Cry me a river, McCrindle! No one says “Generation Y.” “Millennial” is one of the most memorable generation names in history, even if it doesn’t fit neatly into the list. In a single word, it conjures images of Y2K fashion, flip phones, and Starbucks cups. Even the phrase “Cry Me a River” can’t escape its millennial associations thanks to heartthrob Justin Timberlake’s top pop song.

Much of McCrindle’s writeup focused on the technology that so-called Generation Beta will grow up with: self-driving cars, generative AI, virtual reality—the list goes on and on. The written-by-committee post ends with the prediction that Gen B will be great global citizens focused on sustainability. (Can I get Google to translate what exactly those words mean?)

“We know that generational transitions are more than just chronological—they are defined by the events, technologies, and cultural shifts of their time. Generation Beta represents a pivotal chapter in our evolving world,” McCrindle says. Such a pivotal generation needs a more thought-out name. Perhaps the perfect name will become apparent as the defining events of their lives unfold. Will they be the Trumpsters? The TikTokers? The Little Terrorists? 

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In our pessimistic age full of blackpillers and cynics, each sweet 2025 baby offers a little ray of optimism. I move that we reflect that hope in a new name: the Golden Generation. Like English soccer fans, we need a golden generation to give us reason for hope. This generation of children born between 2025 and 2039 will have more knowledge and more technology at their fingertips than we can even imagine. They’ll have endless opportunity and endless temptation. Let’s give them a name they want to live up to. 

The Golden Generation will be born to younger millennials and elder zoomers, many of whom have already had horrifying experiences on the Internet. They’ve been cyberbullied on Instagram by their so-called friends from school. They’ve logged into chat site Omegle at sleepovers only to get flashed by strangers. They know that the Internet is not a kid- or teen-friendly place (and some of them, like Clare Morell of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, are writing about how to fix this). 

Gen Alpha and those that follow have the potential to become the most technocratic generation ever—children who learn to trust algorithms over their instincts and internet personalities over their parents. It’s up to us, their parents, grandparents, and caregivers, to show them a different way. But first, we have to do better. We have to put down our phones at dinner, do things for our own enjoyment instead of social media gratification, and generally resist the siren call of letting machines run our lives. It’s hard, but it’s worth it. After all, a golden age can only be ushered in by a golden generation.

Sourse: theamericanconservative.com