An overwhelming majority of Americans, as revealed in a Reuters/Ipsos poll published on Wednesday, express concern about the potential risks posed by the rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Over two-thirds of respondents are worried about the negative impacts of AI, with 61% believing it could endanger human civilization.
The widespread integration of AI into daily life, exemplified by the exponential rise of OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot, has propelled AI to the forefront of public discourse. This has triggered an AI arms race, with industry giants like Microsoft and Google striving to outperform each other in the field of AI.
Lawmakers and AI companies have also voiced apprehension. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testified before the U.S. Congress, highlighting concerns about potential misuse of AI technology and advocating for regulation. During a Senate panel discussion on AI applications, Senator Cory Booker emphasized the global explosion of AI and the need to address its regulation.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll underscores the prevailing sentiments among Americans, with three times as many individuals foreseeing negative consequences from AI compared to those who do not. Specifically, 61% of respondents perceive AI as a threat to humanity, while only 22% disagreed, and 17% remained uncertain.
Concern levels were particularly high among supporters of former President Donald Trump, with 70% expressing apprehension, compared to 60% among Joe Biden voters. Additionally, Evangelical Christians were more inclined to strongly agree that AI poses risks to humanity, with 32% holding this view compared to 24% of non-Evangelical Christians.
Landon Klein, director of U.S. policy at the Future of Life Institute, which penned an open letter signed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk calling for a pause in AI research, highlighted the broad-based worry regarding AI's negative effects. Drawing parallels to the beginning of the nuclear era, Klein stressed the importance of taking action in response to public concerns.
Despite the concerns expressed, Americans prioritize other issues such as crime and the economy. A significant majority, 77%, supports increasing police funding to combat crime, while 82% are worried about the risk of a recession.
Industry experts argue for a better understanding of AI's benefits. Sebastian Thrun, a computer science professor at Stanford and founder of Google X, emphasizes that AI will enhance people's quality of life, making them more competent and efficient. Ion Stoica, a professor at UC Berkeley and co-founder of AI company Anyscale, points out that the positive applications of AI, such as revolutionizing drug discovery, often go unnoticed compared to the attention garnered by ChatGPT.
The online poll surveyed 4,415 U.S. adults between May 9 and May 15, with a credibility interval (a measure of accuracy) of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
No comments:
Post a Comment