What Americans THINK About AI

RAD Campaign and Women Who Tech commissioned a nationally representative poll of 1,015 U.S. adults (18+) to understand Americans' concerns about artificial intelligence (AI).

The findings show that Americans are more concerned about AI's use in deepfakes, election disinformation, and the sexualization of women and children than its impact on jobs or the economy.

Overall, 71% worry about AI-generated deepfakes and disinformation affecting elections, while 67% are concerned about AI being used to sexualize women. Respondents also identified Tiktok and X as the leading source of AI misinformation.

Explore the data by gender, age, race, political affiliation, region, and more to see how views on AI vary across politics, culture, work, and the economy.

Learn more about the poll’s methodology.

Increasingly, people across party lines agree that election-related disinformation is a significant concern that must be addressed.

81% of people support either disclosure requirements or outright restrictions on politicians' use of AI.

TikTok is seen as the biggest source of AI misinformation and slop.

Americans are split with 31% saying they are less likely to engage politically, while the same number say it makes them more likely to engage compared to 5-10 years ago.

Americans are concerned that AI is enabling more sexual harassment. AI-generated sexual content involving women and children is one of Americans' biggest AI fears. People are more concerned about AI being used to sexualize women and children than they are about AI taking their jobs.

Americans are more likely to be very concerned about AI being used to sexualize children (52%) than women (44%). That difference is much wider among men (49% vs. 37%) than women (54% vs. 50%).

71% of respondents are concerned about AI being used to sexualize children, a top concern that emerged in the study.

Americans are more concerned about AI being used to sexualize women and children than they are about AI taking their jobs. The findings suggest the public sees AI-enabled exploitation as an immediate societal risk, even as debates about automation and employment continue.

People see AI helping their employers more than helping themselves. Americans believe corporations will benefit more from AI than ordinary people. Younger Americans are dramatically more optimistic about AI in the workplace.

Black Americans are nearly 2X as optimistic as white Americans about AI’s impact on their jobs, and are 2X as likely as white workers to believe AI will help their jobs and companies.

Younger Americans see more opportunity in AI, while older Americans are more cautious. Nearly half of adults under 45 view AI’s impact on their jobs, companies, and personal lives positively—compared with about one in five adults 65 and older.

Women are less optimistic than men about AI’s impact on the economy. Only 21% of women believe AI will be a net positive, while 42% believe it will be a net negative.