- Name
- Anthony Roberts, Jr.
- Role
- Marketing strategist and internet trends analyst
- Education
- A.S. and B.S. in Marketing · M.S. in Internet Marketing
- Covers
- AI search, scams, data privacy, the digital divide, data centers, creators and social media
- Response time
- Within 24 hours
- Contact
- contact@arobjr.com · LinkedIn
Bio
Anthony Roberts, Jr. is a marketing strategist and internet trends analyst who studies how AI, data and platforms are changing the way people think, trust and spend.
Anthony Roberts, Jr. is a marketing strategist and internet trends analyst with an A.S. and B.S. in Marketing and an M.S. in Internet Marketing. His eighteen theories, each backed by U.S. data and the strongest counter-evidence, forecast how AI answers, scams, data centers and the digital divide are reshaping everyday life.
Anthony Roberts, Jr. is a marketing strategist and internet trends analyst. He holds an A.S. and B.S. in Marketing and an M.S. in Internet Marketing, and his work focuses on where people’s attention, trust and money are going online. His project, eighteen data-backed theories on what the internet is doing to us, covers who will control the internet, how AI answers and zero-click search are changing what people know, the rise of scams and deepfakes, the hidden power and water cost of data centers, the widening digital divide, and the strain on the creator economy and social media. Each theory pairs U.S. statistics with the strongest evidence against it, Anthony’s response, and practical steps for both marketers and everyday readers. He is available to comment on AI, online trust, data privacy, digital dependence and the future of marketing. Read the theories at theories.arobjr.com.
Why talk to Anthony
- Eighteen sourced forecasts. Every claim comes with U.S. data, dates and links you can check.
- A marketer’s view. He explains how platforms, ads and attention actually make money, and what that means for people.
- Balanced by design. Each theory includes the strongest evidence against it, so quotes hold up.
Story pitches
Why 7 in 10 Google searches now end without a click
AI answers at the top of search are replacing visits to websites, and most people never check the sources.
Key stat: 68% of U.S. Google searches ended without a click in early 2026. · Read the theory →
The $15.9 billion scam problem: why fake texts keep working
Scams are getting better, not just more common, and most people can’t tell a real message from a good fake.
Key stat: Americans reported losing a record $15.9 billion to fraud in 2025, up from $12.5 billion in 2024. · Read the theory →
Your AI answers have a power bill
Data centers could use up to 12% of U.S. electricity by 2028, and households near them are feeling it.
Key stat: U.S. data centers used 4.4% of the country’s electricity in 2023. · Read the theory →
Most Americans can’t tell real from AI
Fake photos, voices and video now pass as real, and the gap between people who can spot them and people who can’t is growing.
Key stat: 53% of Americans aren’t confident they could tell AI content from human content. · Read the theory →
The internet is turning into toll roads
After the broadband subsidy ended, millions of lower-income and older Americans are falling behind.
Key stat: 23 million households lost help paying for internet in 2024. · Read the theory →
Followers now equal credibility
Most news influencers have never worked in news, yet their audiences trust them to explain current events.
Key stat: 77% of the news influencers Americans follow have no news background. · Read the theory →
Why bystanders film instead of calling 911
When someone is hurt in public, phones come out fast. Anthony explains why recording feels like helping, and what people should do first.
Key stat: Responders recorded a bystander helping in just 11% of 16.2 million U.S. emergency medical calls. On public streets it was 1 in 39. · Read the theory →
Stats fact sheet
Every lead number, with its year and primary source. Figures are U.S. unless noted.
| No. | Number | What it means | Data | Theory |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 55% | of Americans backed government limits on false information online in 2023, up from 39% in 2018. It eased to 51% in 2025 and is still a majority. | 2023 · Pew Research Center · Source | The open internet has an expiration date |
| 2 | $20.9B | in cybercrime losses reported to the FBI in 2025, the highest on record. | 2025 · FBI IC3 · Source | The next war will be fought on the network |
| 3 | 73% | of Americans feel they have little or no control over the data companies collect about them. | 2023 · Pew Research Center · Source | Data is the currency. You are the mint |
| 4 | 23M | U.S. households lost their help paying for internet when federal funding ran out in June 2024. | 2024 · FCC · Source | The internet will have toll lanes |
| 5 | 28% | of U.S. adults now read at the lowest proficiency level. In 2017 it was 19%. | 2023 · NCES · Source | The smarter the internet gets, the less we think |
| 6 | 43% | of Americans under 30 can read an analog clock at a glance. For those 65 and older it is 95%. | 2025 · YouGov · Source | A generation can’t tell time without a screen |
| 7 | $11B | lost by the U.S. economy for every day the internet is down. | 2023 · Atlas VPN, NetBlocks tool · Source | The economy has no offline mode |
| 8 | 1% | of visits to Google’s AI summaries end with a click on one of the sources it cites. | 2025 · Pew Research Center · Source | If the AI said it, it must be true |
| 9 | 68% | of U.S. Google searches now end without a click to any website. | 2026 · SparkToro / Similarweb · Source | The answer is the end of the search |
| 10 | 12% | of all U.S. electricity could go to data centers by 2028, up from 1.9% in 2018. | 2028 projection · LBNL · Source | Every instant answer drains the grid |
| 11 | 53% | of Americans are not confident they can tell whether something was made by AI or by a person. | 2025 · Pew Research Center · Source | Seeing is no longer believing |
| 12 | $15.9B | lost by Americans to fraud in 2025, a record. The FTC says the real figure is likely far higher because most scams go unreported. | 2025 · FTC · Source | Every message is a possible trap |
| 13 | 1 in 7 | Americans consume more than eight hours of partisan media every month. | 2025 · Broockman et al., AJPS · Source | We only believe what agrees with us |
| 14 | 77% | of the influencers Americans get news from have never worked in news. | 2024 · Pew Research Center · Source | The loudest voice wins |
| 15 | 48.7% | of U.S. creators make less than $10,000 a year from their content. | 2026 survey · Influencer Marketing Factory · Source | The creator economy is a bubble |
| 16 | −25% | drop since 2014 in people who use social media to stay in touch with friends, express themselves or meet new people (global). | 2014–2025 · GWI for the Financial Times · Source | Social media stopped being social |
| 17 | 20 min | a day Americans spent with friends in person in 2020, down from 60 minutes in 2003. | 2003–2020 · U.S. Surgeon General · Source | We forgot how to talk face to face |
| 18 | 11% | of 16.2 million U.S. emergency medical calls had a bystander helping. | 2012 records · NEMSIS, Faul et al. 2016 · Source | We film instead of help |
Will comment on
- AI search, AI answers and zero-click search
- Online scams, phishing and deepfakes
- Data privacy and the data economy
- Digital dependence, outages and cyberattacks
- The digital divide and internet access
- Data centers, energy and the cost of AI
- Social media, influencers and the creator economy
- What these trends mean for marketers and brands
Won’t comment on
- Legal or financial advice
- Comments on a specific company’s finances or stock
- Political endorsements of candidates or parties
- Breaking security incidents before official confirmation
Request an interview
This opens an email to Anthony with your details filled in. He replies within 24 hours.