Skepticism towards artificial intelligence has increased in the US amid growing awareness of the technology, according to a survey by Gallup.
A total of 39% of respondents believe AI does more harm than good to society, up from 31% the previous year and 40% in 2023. Meanwhile, 52% said the impact is roughly equal, and 9% viewed it as mostly positive.
Awareness has also increased, with 70% of American adults in 2026 claiming at least some knowledge of AI, compared to 64% in 2024.
The most significant shift towards distrust was observed among those aged 18–29, with 47% considering AI more harmful (up from 36% in 2025). The percentage of those who somewhat trust businesses to use AI responsibly fell from 30% to 20%, while those who do not trust companies at all rose from 29% to 41%.
Concerns about the job market have also intensified. About 79% of respondents believe AI will reduce the number of jobs in the US over the next decade, up from 73% in 2025 and 75% previously.
Among those aged 18–29, this figure increased from 62% to 75%, and in the 45–59 age group, it rose from 75% to 84%.
Overall, 27% of respondents said they “strongly” or “somewhat” trust businesses to use AI responsibly, down from 31% in 2025.
The survey was conducted online among 3,270 US adults from May 4 to May 11, 2026.
In July, 200 people marched between the offices of OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind in San Francisco, demanding a halt to the training of more powerful AI models.
