Half of Americans expect misinformation spread by artificial intelligence to affect who wins the 2024 election, and a third say they will trust the results less because of artificial intelligence, according to an Axios-Morning Consult AI poll.
It’s a sentiment that could fuel more doubt and anger about the first presidential campaign since the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The implication: Supporters of former President Trump are nearly twice as likely as supporters of President Biden to say AI will reduce their trust in the election results (47% vs. 27%).
Self-described liberals (21%) are nearly twice as likely as moderates (11%) or conservatives (12%) to say they are using generative AI in work or education. Part of this may have to do with age, with 35% of Gen Z saying this but only 3% of Baby Boomers.
Driving the news: The findings come as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer prepares to hold a major artificial intelligence "forum" with top tech executives on Wednesday.
Among those who use AI to complete tasks, 64% said they believe AI-generated content is of higher quality than content they could complete themselves.
Overall picture:
A survey of 2,203 U.S. adults found that a majority of Americans expect humanity to lose control of artificial intelligence within the next 25 years.
Americans across ideological lines are more pessimistic (36%) than optimistic (26%) about the future of artificial intelligence.
Overall, Americans are more skeptical that artificial intelligence can be effectively regulated than computer scientists interviewed for a recent survey by AI experts at Syracuse University’s Axios Generation Lab.
The general public also expresses more confidence than experts in the way individual politicians handle artificial intelligence—Democrats support Biden, Republicans support Trump.
Looking at the numbers: 53% of respondents said misinformation spread by AI will affect who wins. This view is widely shared among regular viewers of Fox, CNN and MSNBC.
35% say AI will reduce their trust in election ads (42% of Trump voters; 33% of Biden voters).
But distrust in artificial intelligence may reflect a lack of trust in American society not only in tech companies but also in broader institutions, from big business to the military to the Supreme Court.
Americans have lower trust in AI technology institutions than many other countries, according to surveys
In March, coinciding with the release of ChatGPT-4, interest in generative AI peaked.
That’s according to tracking by MorningConsult, whose experts say that in recent months the debate has shifted from what AI can do to how to manage its capabilities.
Self-reported use of AI tools cannot be independently verified.
No generation feels “very familiar” with generative AI, but Gen Z (22%) and Millennials (23%) are most likely to feel familiar and express trust and interest in AI.
Only 8% of Generation X and 4% of Baby Boomers feel “very familiar” with generative AI.
People over 65 have long considered themselves unfamiliar with the various uses of artificial intelligence—from developing new drugs to designing better buildings.
Whether parents allow children under 18 to use artificial intelligence is related to the parents’ own experience with artificial intelligence chatbots. Among parents who have used such chatbots, 83% allow their children to use them, compared with 34% of parents who have not used such products.
About one-third of U.S. adults say they are “very worried” about the development of artificial intelligence — a level that is consistent across levels of use of AI chatbots and whether respondents say they are enthusiastic about technology in general.
More people think humans are still smarter than AI (34%), but nearly two-thirds of respondents said we will definitely or probably reach a point where humans lose control of AI.
Among those who believe humans will lose control of artificial intelligence, 54% predict this transition will occur within five years, and 90% believe it will occur within the next 25 years (roughly 6 in 10 respondents).
Eli Yokley, a political analyst at Morning Consult, said that while concerns about AI-driven misinformation are "politically uniting" across party lines, a lack of trust in leaders and institutions "suggests the dangers Capitol Hill oversight efforts face" of the rapidly budding technology. ”
Technology analyst Jordan Marlatt noted that while most Millennials express enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, “they also share the same concerns about the technology as many others. ”
There is also no consensus on regulation. One-third of respondents said that artificial intelligence cannot be effectively regulated. This is higher than the 26% who believe that creating a new federal government agency is the best option.
Even after Within their own party base, no presidential candidate has a “great deal” of trust from a majority of their own party in overseeing artificial intelligence. Only 35% of Democrats have a lot of trust in Biden’s oversight of artificial intelligence, compared with 40% of Republicans who have a lot of trust in Trump. Big trust, with trust in Trump's closest primary rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, at 21%
Methodology: This poll was conducted online from August 10 to 13, 2023. The sample includes 2,203 U.S. adults. Results are weighted by age, sex, race, education, region, sex by age, and race by education to approximate the full survey, with a margin of error of ±2 percentage points.