A hot potato: The companies creating and investing in generative AI push the narrative that the technology will be more revolutionary than the internet. Most of the world, however, has a very different view, with the majority of countries more concerned than they are excited. The nation with the most worried population is the US, which started and is driving the industry.
A recent survey from the Pew Research Center looks at how people around the world view AI. The bottom line is that a median of 43% of respondents said they are equally concerned and excited. That's only 8% more than the 34% who said they were more concerned than excited. As for those who agree with the AI firms and feel more excited than concerned, a mere 16% of people fall into this category.
Levels of concern vary by country. The US and Italy appear most worried, with half of respondents from these nations saying they are more concerned – just 10% of those in the US feel the opposite. The only country with fewer people excited about AI than the US is Canada (9%).
Only two countries have more people excited about AI than concerned: Israel (21% vs. 29%), and South Korea (16% vs. 22%). In no country do more than three in ten adults say they are excited.
The survey shows a correlation between a country's income and awareness of AI; those in higher-income nations tend to have heard more about the technology.
There's also a link showing that people with less education are more concerned about AI than those with more education. People who use the internet almost constantly are more likely to be excited at the prospect of AI entering every aspect of our lives, too.
Most people trust their own governments to regulate AI, including 89% of adults in India, 74% in Indonesia, and 72% in Israel. In the US, where this has become a hot-button topic, 44% of people trust the government to regulate AI and 47% are distrustful. Unsurprisingly, countries that are more enthusiastic about AI have more trust that their government will regulate the industry.
In the US, 54% of Republican Party supporters trust the government to regulate AI effectively. Just 36% of Democrats feel the same.
Many CEOs and AI executives, including OpenAI boss Sam Altman, now admit that it will kill off jobs and erase entire work categories, a contrast to the previous claim that it would augment people's work. Despite these admissions, many within the industry still seem confused or even annoyed that the public doesn't share their enthusiasm for AI.
The survey results further illustrate most of the public's apathy or anger toward AI, but don't expect a multi-billion-dollar industry to change just because people are concerned about the end product.
The US is the country most worried about AI, Pew survey finds
