An AI giant funded a recent poll revealing Massachusetts voters' deep anxieties about artificial intelligence, with job loss and economic disruption topping their list of concerns. The MassINC Polling Group survey, conducted from June 23 to July 1 of the same year, found 65% of 1,264 registered voters are more concerned about AI's dangers than its potential to aid humanity. Only 16% expressed excitement for AI's purported benefits.
Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed voiced concerns about AI's impact. Their primary worry, cited by 32%, was job loss and broader economic disruption. This fear highlights the direct threat automation poses to the working class, a mechanism for capital to reduce labor costs and increase surplus extraction.
Other significant anxieties included the loss of skills or overreliance on AI, and the spread of misinformation, each ranking at 16%. The environmental impact of massive data centers and the misuse of AI power also registered as concerns, both at 15%. These are costs often externalized by corporations onto the public and the planet.
Usage patterns show a divided populace. Thirty-nine percent of voters use popular AI tools like Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or Microsoft Copilot daily or a few times a week. However, 27% reported no use of such tools in the past year. Even among those who don't use AI, 80% have heard "a great deal" or "a fair amount" about it, and 72% are at least somewhat familiar with generative AI.
Capital's Survey, Workers' Fears
The poll's sponsorship by AI giant Anthropic underscores capital's interest in public perception as it deploys these transformative technologies. While corporations push for rapid adoption, the working class anticipates the material consequences. The top concern—job loss—is a direct outcome of capital's drive for efficiency, often achieved by replacing human labor with machines, further concentrating wealth.
The State's Limited Role
Voters overwhelmingly support government oversight of AI. Fifty-nine percent believe the government should regulate AI companies deploying models with serious risks, while only 23% trust corporations to police themselves. A significant 78% of Massachusetts residents worry more about the dangers of failing to regulate AI than about rules slowing tech innovation. Nearly half, 47%, consider it "very likely" that AI could enable catastrophic harms, such as chemical, biological, or cyberattacks, without robust safeguards.
Awareness of local legislative efforts remains low, with only 13% having heard "a great deal" or "a fair amount" about Beacon Hill's attempts to pass AI safety rules. Once informed, 75% backed proposals requiring the largest AI companies to assess catastrophic risks, publish safety plans, and report serious incidents to the attorney general. Two-thirds of voters want the state to act now rather than await federal guidelines. These proposed regulations, while appearing to address risks, primarily function to manage the system's contradictions, offering symbolic concessions that do not challenge the fundamental drive for profit and labor displacement inherent in AI's development.