AI Is Everywhere. So Why Are People Buying Flip Phones?

I use AI every day. I build my own tools with it. I’m not anti-tech.

But I think we’re underestimating people.

So I went looking at search data. I wanted to see what people are reaching for while AI takes over everything else. What I found gave me some hope.

Seven things people are choosing over screens

Pushing back on AI data centers. This one went from nothing to a spike. In the first half of 2026, nearly $200 billion in U.S. data center projects were blocked or delayed, much of it by local opposition.

Dumbphones. Searches are at an all-time high. Sales to 18 to 24 year olds are up 148%.

Letters in the mail. Searches took off in 2025. One company that mails stories as physical letters grew from 38 subscribers to 180,000 readers.

Run clubs. Searches are at a 20-year high. People want to be around other people.

Live sports. Searches for sporting events are the highest since 2004. NFL team values jumped 34% in one year.

Handmade. Searches just hit a 20-year high. Knitting and crochet are having a moment.

Film cameras. Searches are climbing again. Kodak says demand has doubled.

What ties them together

Every one of these is physical. You hold it, mail it, run it, or show up for it.

None of them are about efficiency. A flip phone does less. A letter is slower. A run club is less convenient than a treadmill at home. People are choosing them anyway.

That tells me something. When everything gets faster and more automated, people start to value the things that aren’t.

Why this matters for places

I work in retail real estate, so I see this through that lens.

A run club needs a place to start and finish. Usually it’s a coffee shop. Live sports need venues and somewhere to eat after. Hobbies like knitting and film photography have shops and classes. Letters need a mailbox and a stationery aisle.

All of it happens somewhere real. That’s good news for anyone who owns, leases, or runs a physical space.

The question for brick-and-mortar isn’t whether AI will change things. It will. The question is whether your space gives people a reason to show up in person.

The bottom line

AI will change a lot. But people still want real things. Real places. Real people.

We’re not as easy to replace as we think.

I’ll be watching what people choose over tech next.