PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Democrats and Republicans disagree about a lot of things, but a new poll shows one issue on which they concur is that the government needs to do more to regulate artificial intelligence.
The poll from the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania asked about impacts on the economy, the arts, utility costs, mental health and well-being. It found almost half of Americans think AI will have a negative impact on the United States over the next 10 years.
“From government efficiency to the overall economy to relations between the U.S. and China, people are pretty pessimistic,” said Matt Levendusky, a political science professor and chair of the center’s Institutions of Democracy division. “The one area where people do think it’s going to make things better is in medical research.”
Levendusky thinks this may be a reflection of media coverage. “They hear the stories, even from the boosters in Silicon Valley, that say this is going to disrupt white collar work. College students aren’t going to be able to find jobs,” he said.
What’s notable, amidst the polarization in the United States, is that this is a bipartisan issue, with the majority of those polled saying they want more government regulation of AI.
83% of those asked said the government has done too little. In addition, 49% opposed new data centers in their areas, compared to 21% who supported them.
“This is an issue that is crying out for leadership,” said Levendusky. “Both parties have a real opportunity here and the question is which one of them is going to pick up that opportunity and run with it, because this is an issue that’s going to become more important over time, not less.”
