Editorial illustration for Global Survey: 41% Equally Concerned and Excited About AI's Rise
41% of People Both Excited and Worried About AI
Global Survey: 41% Equally Concerned and Excited About AI's Rise
Pew Research surveyed 42,151 people across 37 countries between February 8 and May 13 this year, asking how they feel about artificial intelligence and where it's taking their jobs, their incomes, and their daily lives. The timing matters: the fieldwork wrapped months before the latest round of dire predictions from AI executives made headlines. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, has warned that AI could wipe out half of entry-level white-collar jobs. Pew's numbers suggest the public didn't need that warning to start worrying.
In 34 of the 37 countries polled, more people expect AI to destroy jobs over the next two decades than expect it to create them. Australia and South Korea top the list at 76 percent, with the US close behind at 71 percent. That pessimism doesn't stop at employment.
Respondents in wealthier, left-leaning countries are especially likely to say AI will widen the gap between rich and poor. Age shapes the picture too, splitting older and younger respondents in ways that complicate any simple story about who fears AI most and why.
A majority sees AI as a threat to human employment. In 34 of the 37 countries surveyed, people are more likely to believe AI will lead to job losses over the next 20 years rather than create new ones.
Why this matters
Pew's numbers landed before Sam Altman and others started talking about job losses in blunter terms this year, which makes the 41 percent ambivalence figure worth watching rather than dismissing. That's not a public sold on AI, and it's not a public in revolt either. It's 42,151 people across 37 countries sitting on the fence, with only 13 percent primarily excited. For anyone building or funding AI products, that gap between excitement and concern is the market you're actually selling into, not the one Silicon Valley conference panels describe.
We'd read this as a warning against the industry's own narrative discipline. Companies keep pitching AI as inevitable and mostly good; the public, surveyed months before the latest doom cycle, already wasn't buying that framing wholesale. If sentiment was this split in the spring, it's hard to imagine the recent wave of warnings about job displacement pushed anyone toward optimism. Founders courting mainstream adoption, not just early adopters, should treat that 37 percent "primarily concerned" figure as the baseline they're working against, not a fringe reaction to ignore.
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Common Questions Answered
What were the key findings from the Pew Research survey on global AI sentiment?
The Pew Research survey of 42,151 people across 37 countries found that 41% of respondents felt equally concerned and excited about AI's rise, while only 13% were primarily excited. The survey was conducted between February 8 and May 13, capturing public sentiment before recent warnings from AI executives about job displacement became mainstream headlines.
In how many countries surveyed do people believe AI will cause job losses rather than create new ones?
In 34 of the 37 countries surveyed, a majority of people are more likely to believe AI will lead to job losses over the next 20 years rather than create new employment opportunities. This widespread concern about employment reflects a global skepticism about AI's economic impact across diverse regions.
What did Dario Amodei warn about regarding AI and entry-level employment?
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, warned that AI could wipe out half of entry-level white-collar jobs. This prediction represents one of the more dire forecasts from AI executives about the technology's impact on the job market.
Why is the timing of the Pew Research survey significant for understanding public AI sentiment?
The survey's fieldwork was completed months before the latest wave of dire predictions from AI executives made headlines, meaning the 41% ambivalence figure reflects public concern about AI before these blunt warnings about job losses became widely publicized. This timing makes the survey results particularly valuable for understanding baseline public sentiment independent of recent executive commentary.
What does the 41% ambivalence figure reveal about the market opportunity for AI products?
The 41% of people who are equally concerned and excited about AI, combined with only 13% who are primarily excited, indicates that the actual market for AI products consists largely of people sitting on the fence rather than enthusiasts. This gap between excitement and concern represents the real addressable market that AI builders and funders need to consider when developing and promoting their products.
Further Reading
- Pessimism Reigns Over AI and Jobs, Pew Poll Finds - Gizmodo
- AI is feared globally as the destroyer of jobs - The Verge
- People fear AI will cause job loss, not growth, new survey finds - Reuters
- Globally, More People Expect AI to Cause Job Loss Than Growth - Pew Research Center
- How AI is Changing Early Careers: A View from Entry-Level Workers - World Economic Forum
