Kalshi attracts Gen Z traders seeking quick gains in prediction markets

Young adults are turning event contracts on weather, politics, and sports into a side hustle, and platforms are adding guardrails Thomas Carvo studied meteorology. Now he puts that training to work by trading on tomorrow’s weather in various cities through Kalshi, the prediction market where users can wager on almost anything. Who is actually trading The demographic skew is hard to miss. A survey from S&P Global Market Intelligence’s Kagan unit found that more than 60% of participants on Kalshi and Polymarket are under 35. Sports contracts ranked as the favorite category among those users. The menu goes well beyond the scoreboard. Kalshi lists contracts on questions like who will become President Donald Trump’s next press secretary and when NASA will next put astronauts on the moon. Think of each contract as a yes-or-no question with a price attached. If you think the market is underestimating the odds, you buy. If the event happens, you get paid. If it doesn’t, your stake is gone. The youngest users are moving serious money. CNN reported that traders aged 18 to 21 were responsible for roughly $5.4 billion in trading activity on Kalshi through August 2026. That sits inside a mu...