Poll: Americans say ‘too little’ AI regulations

By Andrew Rice
The Center Square

Many Americans do not think there is enough government regulation of artificial intelligence, according to a new poll.

The Center Square’s Voters Voice Poll, conducted by Noble Predictive Insights, found that 45% of registered voters said there is “too little” government regulation of AI. Only 13% of voters said there was “too much” government regulation of AI and 23% said there was “about the right amount” of government regulation in AI.

The poll, conducted from June 1-4, surveyed 2,585 respondents. The sample included 915 Republicans, 1,013 Democrats and 297 true independents, which are individuals who do not lean toward either major party when asked.

As AI companies race to expand data centers across the country, many elected leaders and taxpayers have spoken out. Residents living near data centers have complained of energy problems, lack of water access, and noise pollution.

Across partisan lines, there was a significant difference among Democrats and Republicans. About 37% of respondents who identified themselves as Republicans said there was “too little” government regulation of AI, compared to 53% of Democratic respondents who said the same.

About 41% of true independent respondents said there was “too little” government regulation of AI.

Older respondents were more likely to believe there is “too little” government regulation of AI. About 55% of respondents older than 65 agreed with the statement, compared to 37% of those ages 18-29 who said the same.

Mike Noble, founder of Noble Predictive Insights, said greater exposure to technology likely explains the difference among various age groups.

“It’s a classic thing of generational differences,” Noble said. “There’s a big gap between the two on their technological experience.”

Across racial backgrounds, white respondents were more likely to believe there was “too little” government regulation of AI. About 50% of white respondents believed there was “too little” regulation of AI, compared to 39% of Hispanics or Latinos and 30% of Black respondents who said the same.

Overall, 18% of respondents said they were “not sure” whether there was too much, too little or the right amount of government regulation of AI. The amount of individuals who were unsure exceeded categories in many other questions.

“There is a higher unsure rate compared to many of our other questions,” Noble said. “It’s a novelty among the electorate and many people haven’t made up their minds about it.”

Female respondents were more likely than any other demographic group to be unsure about their stance on government regulation of AI, at 23%.

“Government regulation needs to catch up to this new, fast, expanding technology,” Noble said.