I've been in the AI space for a while, and I've noticed a pretty reliable trajectory as people come to terms with generative AI. After reflecting on it, I realized that it follows the seven stages of grief pretty closely!

😱 Stage 1 - Ontological Shock: That moment when reality grabs you by the eyeballs and says "PAY ATTENTION!" This is when you first realize AI isn't just hype - it's a paradigm shift that's going to change everything.

🙈 Stage 2 - Flat Out Rejection: The "fake news" phase. This is when people actively look for reasons to dismiss AI advances as irrelevant or fraudulent. "It's all just smoke and mirrors!"

👿 Stage 3 - Lashing Out: The anger phase. "This is dangerous!" "It's going to destroy everything!" People often get stuck here, using anger as a shield against deeper fears.

🤔 Stage 4 - Rationalization: The "it's just" phase. "It's just pattern matching." "It's just mimicking humans." This is sophisticated denial - using intellectual frameworks to create distance from the implications.

😰 Stage 5 - Existential Dread: The dark night of the soul. Whether it's fear about jobs, society, or extinction scenarios, this is when the full implications start to sink in.

✨ Stage 6 - Glimmers of Possibility: The first rays of hope break through. You start to see the potential benefits and realize that maybe, just maybe, this could be amazing.

🚀 Stage 7 - Integration: You've processed the shock and integrated this new reality into your worldview. Now you can focus on practical problems and solutions rather than existential crises.

Which stage are you in? Your friends? Family? Coworkers?