AI has a communication problem

Artificial Intelligence, though more than a half-century old as a technology, has occupied front-of-mind cultural consciousness for only a few years, since ChatGPT. Yet AI is already profoundly disliked and distrusted in both media meme and apparently in public opinion. The techlash against the internet and then social media took at least two decades to ferment, while the AI backlash feels more like an instant reflex. Fifty-seven percent of Americans say AI’s risks outweigh its benefits, making it less popular even than ICE! Half fret about its ill effects on creativity, meaningful relationships, news, and elections. In rare consensus, Republicans and Democrats alike are NIMBYing data centers across the nation. A German digital conference offers a workshop in poisoning AI data. The FT declares “a new Luddite movement.” And commencement speakers daring to utter the letters A and I are sure to be booed. It is, however, difficult to discern true public opinion from performative public…