Americans are becoming more familiar with artificial intelligence, but that added familiarity is coming with more skepticism, not less.
In a report published Tuesday, polling company Gallup said public attitudes toward AI have cooled after two years of growing comfort with the technology. Gallup said 70% of Americans now describe themselves as somewhat or extremely knowledgeable about AI, up from 64% in 2024. As that number rose, so did concerns about harm, job losses, and whether businesses can be trusted to use the technology responsibly.
More Americans now say AI does more harm than good
Gallup found that 39% of Americans now believe AI does more harm than good, up from 31% in 2025. Just 9% said AI does more good than harm, while 52% said AI produces about equal amounts of harm and good.
The shift was strongest among younger adults. Among Americans ages 18 to 29, nearly half now say AI does more harm than good, up from 36% last year. Gallup said younger adults also grew more skeptical about AI’s overall effects, how businesses are using it, and what it could do to jobs.
Trust in businesses fell
Confidence in businesses to use AI responsibly also moved lower.
Gallup said 27% of Americans trust businesses at least “some” to use AI responsibly, down from 31% in 2025. Among adults ages 18 to 29, that figure fell from 30% to 20%. In the same age group, the share saying they have no trust at all rose from 29% to 41%.
Job-loss concerns kept rising
Nearly eight in 10 Americans said AI will reduce the number of U.S. jobs over the next decade. Gallup put that figure at 79% this year, up from 73% in 2025.
Again, younger adults posted the largest increase. Among those ages 18 to 29, the share expecting job losses rose from 62% to 75%. Among adults ages 45 to 59, it increased from 75% to 84%.
AI is seen as closer to humans on some tasks, but still behind overall
Gallup also found that Americans increasingly see AI as performing about as well as people in tasks such as driving, giving financial advice, and giving medical advice.
Even so, respondents continued to rate people above AI in every category measured. That included hiring decisions, creative work, and helping students with schoolwork.
Other surveys point in the same direction
The Gallup report follows several other surveys that have also shown persistent unease around AI, even as more Americans use it.
In March, an NBC News poll found that 56% of Americans had recently used AI tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, or Google Gemini. Even so, 57% said the risks of the technology outweigh its benefits.
In June, an Anthropic survey of nearly 52,000 Americans found that job losses were the public’s top concern across every state and political party. Just 15% said they trust AI companies to make decisions about how the technology is developed and used.