THE CHANGING FACE OF INFLUENCE (part 4)

We now live most of our waking lives inside the Digital Second Space, a parallel reality of feeds, notifications, algorithmically curated content, and AI-generated everything. For a while, that space felt new. Increasingly, it feels like noise. Seventy-eight percent of Americans now say they prefer in-person social experiences to digital-only, and 81% of Gen Z say they actively wish they could disconnect more easily. Pinterest searches for “digital detox vision boards” were up 273% in 2025 alone.

The data points in one direction: audiences are treating physical presence as a correction to digital overwhelm, and the brands paying attention are responding with experiences that transform moments into memories.