My First Google I/O Left Me Confused: Who Benefits From All This AI?

Four days ago, I arrived in Mountain View, California, to cover my first Google I/O developer conference, expecting the showmanship and AI hype I'm accustomed to hearing at events like this. Don't get me wrong -- I definitely got my share of AI promo as Google becomes, in the words of one of its employees, "unabashedly agent-first."

But really, what I found was a city split in two.

The Google I/O keynote glittered with glossy demos. Execs took the stage to talk about lifestyle uses for new AI, staged scenes of curated travel and polished demos of parties planned by assistants. Backstage and onstage, the message was boundless possibility. Outside the tents, on the streets and in the rideshare queue, the mood felt decidedly different.

Read also:These Are a Few of My Favorite Things From Google I/O 2026

My Uber driver from the airport wove me through downtown Palo...

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