The Distracted Demographic: New Twilio Report Shows 36–50 Year Olds Struggling to Switch Off

Study finds mid-career adults most digitally overloaded — but shows how technology can still act as a bridge to real connection

London, United Kingdom November 19, 2025 - New research from Twilio (NYSE: TWLO), the customer engagement platform that drives real-time, personalised experiences for today’s leading brands, reveals that mid-career professionals are drowning in digital noise. Adults aged 36-40 now face an average of 2,228 unread personal emails - more than double the UK national average1.

The findings, published in Twilio’s Age of Distraction2 report, highlight how mid-career adults - typically more financially secure, and balancing demanding professional and family lives - are shouldering the heaviest digital burden. This group reports higher inbox overload, stronger pressure to stay online, and the lowest emotional return from digital interactions. Many are beginning to self-correct, with rising interest in digital detoxes and solo time as strategies to reset and recharge.

Key Findings: The Distracted Demographic

• Pressure to stay online, but not for who you might think: As many as 44% of 36–50 year olds feel pressured to stay constantly online, compared to just 28% of 18–25 year olds.

• Lower emotional uplift: Only 36% of 41–50 year olds report emotional benefit from video calls and messaging, versus 56% of 18–35 year olds.

• A need for focus time: 41% of mid-career professionals (those aged 36-55) want more digital quiet time at work, compared to 36% nationally.

• Reducing daily device use: 1 in 5 UK adults have attempted a digital detox in the past year, while 83% say periods of solitude, away from social interactions helps them recover their energy and 69% credit it with preserving their mental health. Solo-time is most valued among 31–40 year olds (92%) and 51–55 year olds (90%).

“The generation who learned to be self-sufficient as children, teens and now working adults have found themselves in a world completely driven by digital demands. Amidst their overall sense of anxiety, burnout, and distraction, adults want solutions that won’t make things worse.”, said Catherine Knibbs, a human behaviour technologist and PhD researcher, commenting on the research. 

“Much of this can be found in face-to-face, digitally absent spaces, which many are turning to. While modern life doesn’t allow for us to totally turn our back on technology, this shift means there’s a real need for more considered, careful usage of it in our workplaces, our personal lives, as well as by brands.” 

Technology as a Bridge to Connection

People want brands to use digital tools in ways that create more meaningful moments - from bringing them together in-person, to building deeper, more considered, real-world connections once they are there, allowing time to think and process. Brands should respect their customers’ boundaries, giving them choice and control in how, when, and where they should be engaged with. Technology and AI can absolutely help create meaningful, human-centred interactions, but only when guardrails are in place to prevent overload. Twilio customers are already showing what this looks like in practice.

One example is Posh, a fast-growing events platform that uses Twilio to help communities meet in person. “At Posh, we’ve learned that people don’t need more notifications, they need more meaningful moments. Our mission is to help communities come together in real life, not just scroll past each other online,” said Eli Taylor-Lemire, Co-Founder and CPO at Posh. “With Twilio, we can do this at scale. Programmable Messaging powers over one million real-time updates every day that help users show up to the events that matter. In just two years, Posh has grown from 300,000 to more than 6 million users globally, proving that when you cut through distraction and build trust, real connection follows.”

Sam Richardson, Director of Executive Engagement, EMEA & APJ at Twilio, said: “Mid-career adults are those who have the most to manage digitally, which creates a constant pull on their attention. Facing the greatest pressure to stay online, they also gain the least benefit from it, with a lot of knock-on effects. They are financially influential, professionally powerful, and balancing demanding family lives. But whether it’s workplace demands, school and childcare needs, or hospital appointments, they’re overloaded with interactions that all too often, end up becoming quite complex and don’t add value.

“To win their attention, brands must respect boundaries and build trust. In a world with so many consumers experiencing digital burnout, cutting through and inspiring action can only come from acting in a way that’s respectful as well as useful. Poor service with a lack of context or history places a huge burden on customers that are already burned out. 

“That’s where Twilio comes in: our platform gives businesses a better chance of standing out with personalised messaging, and richer voice and video connections, while secure verification assures them that what they’re seeing is legitimate. Quality over quantity is what will make brands stand out, because the richer the content, the less messages you’ll need to send. Those that chase volume risk being tuned out.”

1 Based on a UK national average of 1,016

2 Age of Distraction. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2111 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 8th – 9th July 2025. The survey was carried out online, with the figures weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).