American Hostility to AI Deepens as 57% Oppose Nearby Datacenters
Updated
Updated · Paul Krugman | Substack · Jun 25
American Hostility to AI Deepens as 57% Oppose Nearby Datacenters
3 articles · Updated · Paul Krugman | Substack · Jun 25
Summary
Pew data show U.S. adults now see AI as negative for society by a wide margin, marking a sharper backlash than earlier public reactions to the internet and social media.
20% unemployment warnings from AI executives helped fuel that hostility, after companies touted job destruction and economic upheaval to attract funding and push businesses into rapid adoption.
Google’s AI-heavy search and workplace mandates have reinforced the sense that AI is being imposed on workers and consumers rather than chosen.
57% of Americans would oppose a datacenter in their neighborhood, while only 14% would support one, tying AI expansion to land use, power demand, water consumption and pollution.
That backlash is widening into politics as tech’s trust deficit, inequality concerns and failed AI-industry election spending make association with the sector increasingly toxic.