Given the current digital landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) will continue to grow whether you want it to or not. Now, the bigger question is what impact it will have on the future lives of humans.
Pew Research Center surveyed AI experts and US adults to gauge their opinion on artificial intelligence, its potential, its impact on jobs, and other aspects. The survey included over 5,400 US adults who were members of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP) and over 1,000 AI experts.
"The public and experts are far apart in their enthusiasm and predictions for AI. But they share similar views in wanting more personal control and worrying regulation will fall short," the think tank said.
Key findings suggest that AI experts are more likely than the general public to say that AI will positively impact the US over the next 20 years. Only 17% of US adults are positive, compared to 56% of AI experts.
Moreover, 47% of the surveyed experts say they are more excited than concerned about AI's increased use in daily life, which drops to 11% for the public. On the flip side, concerns around AI have risen since 2021, and US adults are more concerned than excited, compared to experts.
When the views of men and women are considered separately, more prominent differences are visible among AI experts than among the US public. Of the US public, 22% of men think AI will positively impact the US over the next 20 years, compared to just 12% of women. Among experts, 63% of men think that way, compared to 36% of women.
How AI will affect people's jobs is also a matter of debate and concern these days. More experts than US adults are likely to think AI technologies will benefit rather than harm them personally. Only 23% of US adults surveyed think AI will have a very or somewhat positive effect on how people do their jobs over the next 20 years, compared to 73% of experts.
Experts and the public have differing views about which jobs will be affected by AI. For instance, more experts think AI will leave fewer jobs for truckers and lawyers over the next 20 years. More US adults than experts think AI will leave fewer jobs for factory workers, musicians, teachers, and medical doctors.
Meanwhile, experts and the public largely think jobs for cashiers and journalists are at risk due to AI. Less than 30% of AI experts and US adults think jobs of mental health therapists are at risk.
However, there are some common grounds as well. Both groups have doubts about AI's role in news and elections. Only 10% of both US adults and experts think AI will have a positive impact on elections. It's worth noting that the survey was conducted last year before the 2024 US elections.
When asked in the survey, both experts and the public are worried that the US government won't go far enough to regulate AI effectively. About 55% of US adults and 57% of experts want more control over how AI is used in their personal lives.
Meanwhile, more than half of experts and US adults are also skeptical of industry efforts around responsible AI. They don't have too much or no confidence in US companies' ability to develop and use AI responsibly.
The views are even stronger when the participants' job sectors are considered. According to the survey, AI experts working at colleges and universities are far less confident in companies' efforts than their industry peers.
About 39% of those at private companies or businesses have little to no confidence that companies will develop and use AI responsibly, compared to 60% of experts in the academic sector who think that way.
While AI technologies are developing rapidly, their long-term consequences and risks are yet to be realized. This becomes more important when AI tools capable of making mistakes are readily available and companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and others are approaching users at an early age.
Source: Pew Research Center
4 Comments - Add comment