Why Public Backlash Against AI Is Growing: Fear, Enshittification, and the Tech Broligarchy
By
Paul Krugman
Summary
The article examines the growing public backlash against artificial intelligence, using the example of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt being booed by students at a commencement speech. It cites Pew survey data showing Americans believe by a wide margin that AI will be negative for society. The piece explores multiple reasons for this sentiment: fear of job displacement and societal change, the "enshittification" of digital products and services as AI is integrated, the environmental hostility of massive datacenters, and the perceived arrogance of tech billionaires (the "tech broligarchy") pushing AI development without public consent or consideration of consequences.
Source
Hacker NewsWhy Public Backlash Against AI Is Growing: Fear, Enshittification, and the Tech Broligarchypaulkrugman.substack.comKey quotes
· 3 pulledEric Schmidt, the ex-CEO of Google, recently gave a commencement speech in which he heralded the coming of AI — and was loudly booed by the students.
A recent Pew survey found that American adults believe by a wide margin that AI will be negative for society and, by a smaller margin, that it will be bad for them personally.
It's the fear, the enshittification, datacenter hostility, and the tech broligarchy
You might also wanna read
Graduates heckle tech CEOs praising AI at commencement ceremonies amid bleak job market
University graduates are publicly booing and heckling corporate executives who praise AI during commencement ceremonies, as seen in viral vi
The Verge·1mo ago
AI backlash as the new face of populist resistance to American capitalism
The article discusses the growing backlash against AI, framed as "AI populism," which the author argues is simply a new manifestation of pop
bloodinthemachine.com·29d ago
Tech Billionaires Soften AI Automation Rhetoric Amid Growing Public Backlash
Tech billionaires and CEOs are beginning to moderate their rhetoric about AI-driven automation as public backlash grows. The article argues
futurism.com·22d ago
The Growing Backlash Against AI: University Graduates Lead Resistance to Disruptive Technology
The article examines the growing backlash against AI, particularly among university graduates who fear their skills will become obsolete. Wh
prosyn.org·25d ago
Microsoft responds to student backlash against AI-focused graduation speeches
Microsoft's Brad Smith addressed the growing backlash against AI in a lengthy blog post, responding to viral clips of graduates booing comme
The Verge·14d ago
The AI Backlash: Students and the Growing Resistance to Artificial Intelligence
This article discusses the growing backlash against AI, particularly among university students who feel that large language models have deva
tickettailor.com·24d ago
Comments
Sign in to join the conversation.
No comments yet. Be the first.