The United States remains unmatched in its commitment to artificial intelligence, boasting what the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) calls the “world’s most robust AI ecosystem” and outspending every other nation in both private investment and venture capital. At the same time, Americans are also among the most anxious people in the world when it comes to AI, according to a recent Pew Research study, with a majority of respondents expressing concern rather than excitement about its prevalence in daily life.
How Do Americans Feel About AI?
An October 2025 study by Pew Research found that half of Americans are more concerned than excited about AI’s growing prominence in everyday life. In addition, 47 percent of Americans don’t even trust their own government to regulate the technology, contributing to the uncertainty around AI development.
These findings come at a time when the Trump administration is actively promoting the expansion of AI infrastructure in the United States and pushing back against attempts to regulate the technology. Ironically, this approach may be fueling Americans’ worst fears about AI, raising questions around whether the U.S. can continue down this path of accelerated AI development without leaving everyday Americans behind.
What Does the Study Say About AI Anxiety in America?
Pew Research compiled opinions from nearly 37,000 people located in 25 countries spread across the globe, with just over 8,600 living in the United States. Upon asking participants how they feel about AI’s rise in daily life, researchers found that Americans have the most negative outlook — 50 percent are more concerned than excited about AI, 38 percent are equally concerned and excited and only 10 percent are more excited than concerned.
Italy comes in second, with 50 percent of respondents also feeling more concerned, while 37 percent feel equally concerned and excited and 12 percent feel more excited. For reference, the median percentage of all participants who are more concerned than excited about AI drops to 34 percent. In short, the U.S. proves to be the most anxious nation about AI, and it’s not even close compared to most countries.
So, why exactly are Americans more nervous than any other nation about AI’s increasing number of applications? The answer isn’t so simple.
Why Are Americans Worried About AI?
From the government’s embrace of deregulation to concerns over major industry shifts, several factors are leading Americans to feel more pessimistic toward AI.
Industry Deregulation
The Pew study found that 47 percent of Americans don’t trust their own government to regulate AI. This shouldn’t be surprising given that President Trump has made deregulating the AI industry a key component of his AI Action Plan. Although his first shot at deregulation fell short in the Senate, he continues to clash with states that want to establish their own regulations. Either way, damage is already being inflicted by data center projects that disregard environmental safeguards and chatbots that enable (if not encourage) problematic thinking.
Fewer guardrails clearly favor business growth at the expense of individual and collective well-being, yet tech leaders could gain even more influence over government policy. As the 2026 midterms draw nearer, companies like Meta are funding political action committees to support more pro-AI candidates for state and federal offices. Packing the government with AI-friendly politicians would almost surely kill any sweeping regulatory efforts, leaving Americans vulnerable to data privacy violations, climate change and other effects of unchecked AI initiatives.
Uncertain Career Prospects
Job losses due to automation are also at the forefront of the American consciousness. According to an earlier Pew Research survey, 64 percent of U.S. adults believe AI will lead to fewer jobs over the next 20 years. It doesn’t help that xAI CEO Elon Musk has recently stoked these fears by saying that “AI and robots will replace all jobs” — a claim that Senator Bernie Sanders has admitted isn’t entirely outlandish.
While everyone is worried about AI and its implications for the labor market, younger workers and students are acutely aware of the technology. Pew’s October 2025 study determined that more young adults aged 18-34 have “heard a lot about AI” than older age groups, including 60 percent of U.S. adults aged 18-34 compared to 49 percent aged 35-49 and 38 percent aged 50 or older. This might be what’s driving young people toward the skilled trades in an economy where entry-level opportunities in white-collar professions are being impacted by AI.
That said, young adults tend to be more excited about artificial intelligence than older adults, according to the Pew study. But if AI continues to be a major disruptor within the workforce, young people may come to blame AI for America’s economic woes if they haven’t already.
Pew also notes that “people with less education” feel more concerned than excited about AI and lack general awareness of it overall. AI is such a quickly evolving technology that it can be hard to properly train employees in any profession on how to adapt to an automated workplace. That’s why Trump is trying to expose students to AI earlier by partnering with Big Tech to integrate AI into classrooms and curricula across the U.S.
Still, AI development could veer in the direction of total automation, where AI-powered robots handle complex manual labor. At that point, no amount of reskilling will help professionals stay employable, making it easier to understand why Americans feel completely left in the dark when it comes to AI and how to co-exist with it.
What Does the Rest of the World Think?
The world has mixed feelings about AI: Those who feel equally excited and concerned about AI make up the largest group in 18 out of 25 countries surveyed by Pew. While AI promises to improve industries like healthcare, manufacturing and cybersecurity, this is only if the technology is harnessed properly — something that most people doubt will happen. Respondents were more likely to trust the European Union than the U.S. or China to regulate AI, with 37 percent trusting the U.S. and 27 percent trusting China.
And honestly, who can blame them? America and China are locked in an AI race, sparking a fierce trade war that has disrupted global supply chains. In pushing an ‘America First’ agenda, Trump has gone so far as to threaten European countries for enforcing laws that he believes hinder the international growth of U.S. tech companies.
As a result, everyone feels unsure about AI and whether it will lead to a brighter future for humankind. The reality, though, is that Americans will be most exposed to the effects of the U.S. government’s AI policies, keeping the country’s anxiety levels high.
AI Anxiety May Be Here to Stay in the U.S.
To be fair, America has been fixated on AI well before Trump’s second term. A 2025 report by the Stanford Institute for HAI found that the United States led the world in AI spending in 2024, with the country’s private AI investments exceeding $109 billion — almost 12 times as much as China’s, which barely surpassed $9 billion. Of course, this huge spending gap is what made DeepSeek’s cheap yet powerful model so stunning, spurring U.S. tech companies to expand their infrastructure to retain a shrinking advantage over their Chinese counterparts.
The aftermath of this AI spending frenzy has been the proliferation of data centers in America, raising both environmental fears and electricity bills. But calls to rein in AI are unlikely to sway Trump, since he has sought to cultivate stronger ties between the federal government and tech titans. With the country’s fate intertwined with Big Tech’s, Americans may have to confront the reality that Trump is going all in to win the AI race — even if his policies end up hurting a majority of the U.S. population in the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does research says about America’s attitude toward AI?
According to a 2025 survey conducted by Pew Research, the U.S. has the highest levels of anxiety in regards to AI: 50 percent of Americans are more concerned than excited about AI, 38 percent are equally concerned and excited and 10 percent are more excited than concerned.
What are the main reasons Americans feel anxious about AI?
Many Americans are concerned about AI worsening social inequalities and evolving at a pace that is impossible to keep up with. In addition, the Trump administration’s embrace of deregulation means AI could continue to develop unchecked in the U.S., adding more uncertainty to the situation.
What role does the U.S.-China rivalry play in AI anxiety?
Despite America’s private AI investment being roughly 12 times greater than China’s in 2024, China-based DeepSeek produced a model that rivaled the performance of those created by U.S. tech titans at a fraction of the cost. In response, American AI leaders have invested billions in building out their infrastructure as part of a nationalistic AI agenda to beat their Chinese rivals. This could expose Americans to AI-related climate change, increased living expenses and other issues that paint a bleaker-looking future.
