Public anxiety around artificial intelligence is not subtle anymore. A new AP-NORC poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans think AI is developing too fast, a striking signal that concern about the technology is now mainstream rather than niche.
The poll also found broad agreement on two priorities: keeping AI under human control and protecting workers from harm. Those are not abstract fears. Respondents pointed to privacy, children’s safety, misinformation and job displacement as real-world risks they expect lawmakers and companies to address.
Just as telling, many Americans said they do not trust either political party to handle the issue effectively. That leaves a widening gap between how quickly AI products are being pushed into public life and how much confidence the public has in the institutions supposed to govern them.
In other words, the technology race may still be accelerating, but the politics around it are getting shakier by the week.
If the public thinks AI is moving too fast, how long can Washington and Silicon Valley keep treating speed as the main goal?
