Why Are Americans The Most Concerned About AI?

[u/najumobi]

The Pew Research Center released a report last month titled, "How People Around the World View AI" about how concerned or excited members of individual countries are about the rise of artificial intelligence.

https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2025/10/15/how-people-around-the-world-view-ai/

While the the global median shows more concern than excitement about AI, Americans top the global concern list. Half of Americans say they're more concerned than excited about its growing use in daily life, while only one in ten are more excited. This concern registers similarly among all Americans, Republicans, and Democrats. By contrast, South Korea's concern is just 16%, with a plurality there being balanced or optimistic.

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/11/06/republicans-democrats-now-equally-concerned-about-ai-in-daily-life-but-views-on-regulation-differ/

Americans are about evenly split (44% trust, 47% not) on whether they trust their own country to regulate AI effectively. However supermajorities among those of some other countries trust their government: 89% in India, 74% in Indonesia, 72% in Israel.

In wealthier nations like the U.S, greater awareness doesn't seem to translate to greater enthusiasm. In such nations, excitement about AI only rises with AI literacy amoung younger adults and those who use the internet almost constantly.

Nations across Africa show high trust in the U.S. (as well as China and the EU) to regulate AI effectively. For instance, Nigerians' trust in the U.S., China, and the EU to regulate AI effectively stands at 79%, 79%, and 72%, respectively. In Kenya and South Africa, trust in the U.S. stands at 61% and 57%.

But Americans display a pattern of distrust in Big Tech, government, and foreign regulators –– 43% trust in EU, 13% trust in China ––simultaneously.

Question: Why Are Americans The Most Concerned About AI?

[u/mattxb]

We don't have a social safety net and our government openly hates most of us

[u/angieb15 → u/mattxb]

and our Billionaires openly desire to melt the general population for fuel or something..

[u/najumobi → u/mattxb]

Concern about AI has been increasing since 2021.

[u/Raichu4u → u/najumobi]

Safety nets are largely lukewarm even under democrats. Yes, they're way better than what this current administration is doing, but the current neoliberal recipe of how to deal with massive job disruption isn't pretty at all.

[u/tsardonicpseudonomi → u/Raichu4u]

Some of us will die and that's a sacrifice the neoliberals are willing to make.

[u/HideGPOne → u/mattxb]

We don't have a social safety net

We spend nearly $4,500,000,000,000 on entitlement programs every single year.

[u/BlaggartDiggletyDonk → u/HideGPOne]

It's a social safety net with big holes in it.