Gen Z Survey: AI Illustrations, Manga 'Japan Three Kingdoms' Top Trends for Second Half of 2026

AI illustrations, automatically generated from text or images, topped the list with a 6.5% mention rate. Respondents cited convenience, including the ability to quickly generate multiple images and the fact that friends are also using them.

The manga 'Japan Three Kingdoms', set in a near-future Japan split into three nations, ranked second with 4.5%. The work was adapted into a television anime from April to June 2026, and respondents praised its high animation quality and engaging story. The all-female four-member rock band 'Negishio Butadon' tied for third at 3.8%. The band began official activities in 2025 with members who were then high school students; respondents said the band is a topic at school and they enjoy its songs.

Also tying for third at 3.8% was the 'Ino Tadataka Circle', a term used on social media to describe people who engage in extreme long-distance walking, like Ino Tadataka, who created Japan's first measured map. Respondents said this activity costs little and is easy to participate in, and that in an era focused on efficiency, it allows them to enjoy inefficiency instead.

Among the top ten, the male idol group 'KO1KEYZ' ranked fifth at 2.7%, while the 'cute' female idol groups 'SWEET STEADY' and 'MORE STAR' from the same agency ranked ninth and tenth at 1.2% and 1% respectively. In food, 'custom bowl meals', which combine vegetables, meat, and other ingredients in a single bowl, ranked seventh at 2.5%, and 'Krochi', a Korean-style dessert combining croissants and rice cakes, ranked twelfth at 0.3%. Korean-related trends also included 'Running-core' fashion, which incorporates running clothes into everyday wear, ranking eleventh at 0.8%. Additionally, the development-assistance AI 'Claude Code', which boosts computer programming efficiency, also tied for fifth at 2.7%.