MIT Technology Review: We've Entered the Era of 'AI Malaise' — Hype Cycle Fatigue Setting In Across Industries

MIT Technology Review·medium signal

MIT Technology Review's daily newsletter leads with the thesis that we've entered an 'era of AI malaise' — a distinct phase where the initial excitement around generative AI is giving way to fatigue, disillusionment, and harder questions about ROI. The piece examines how AI is spreading into every sector but enthusiasm is waning as enterprises confront the gap between demo magic and production reality. This cultural signal matters for builders: the market is shifting from 'try AI' to 'prove AI works.'