Survey data shows ChatGPT at a billion users while most adults worry about AI’s personal and social impact.
Public opinion on AI has soured even as usage climbs. Pew Research Center data shows more US adults expect AI to harm them personally and society than expect benefits. Stanford found over half of people worldwide feel nervous about AI products, yet ChatGPT hit a billion monthly users in May.
The tension spans the globe. A Gallup poll in May found 71% of US adults would oppose a new AI data center nearby, more than the 53% who would oppose a nuclear plant. NBC polling in March ranked AI below ICE in popularity. Google DeepMind’s Gemini logged 950 million users in July, and OECD data shows over a third of adults in wealthy democracies used generative AI in three months.
For builders, the split matters. Users adopt tools fast while distrusting the companies that ship them. A Springboards CEO told MIT Technology Review his team calls itself a self-loathing AI company. Product teams should expect scrutiny of every new AI surface, not just the model’s accuracy.
Adoption keeps rising even where sentiment sours. Pew reports half of US adults now use chatbots, more than double the 2023 figure, and one in four do so daily. Watch whether heavy use shifts opinion or hardens it, and whether companies adjust how aggressively they push AI into new products.
What matters
- ChatGPT reached a billion monthly users in May while Pew found half of US adults now use chatbots.
- Builders face users who adopt tools fast yet distrust the companies pushing AI into every surface.
- Watch whether rising usage softens negative sentiment or deepens it as AI spreads into daily work.
Why it matters
Watch whether rising usage softens negative sentiment or deepens it as AI spreads into daily work.
This GenAI News article was prepared in original wording using reporting and materials published by MIT Technology Review AI. Source reference: https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/05/1145682/people-really-hate-ai-so-why-cant-they-get-enough/.
Drafted by the GenAI News review pipeline.