64% of U.S. adults say AI is developing too fast, poll finds
Sixty-four percent of U.S. adults say artificial intelligence is developing too fast, according to a nationwide AP-NORC survey. Respondents also gave higher importance ratings to keeping AI under human control and protecting U.S. workers than to promoting innovation or competing with other countries.
The survey, conducted September 24–28 and published October 8, asked adults whether AI technology in the United States was developing too quickly, too slowly or at about the right pace. Twenty-seven percent said the pace was about right, while 8% said AI was not developing fast enough.
| View of AI’s development pace | Share of adults |
|---|---|
| Too fast | 64% |
| About the right pace | 27% |
| Not fast enough | 8% |
The percentages shown for those three responses add to 99%. The survey topline also records a small “don’t know” response and 1% who skipped or refused the question. The results describe respondents’ views of the pace; they do not measure how quickly AI is actually advancing or what effects it is having.
Human control and worker protection rank high
When asked how important different priorities should be in the U.S. government’s approach to AI, 81% rated keeping AI under human control very or extremely important. Protecting U.S. workers received that rating from 77%.
| Government priority | Very or extremely important |
|---|---|
| Keeping AI under human control | 81% |
| Protecting U.S. workers | 77% |
| Minimizing environmental harm | 69% |
| Growing the U.S. economy | 63% |
| Promoting technological innovation | 51% |
| Competing with other countries, such as China | 45% |
The pattern in the responses puts human oversight and worker protection above economic growth, innovation and international competition among the priorities listed. The figures report ratings on the survey’s question; they do not establish support for a particular law or policy.
Views on the development pace also differed by party. Seventy-six percent of Democrats, including Democratic-leaning respondents, said AI was developing too fast, compared with 54% of Republicans and Republican leaners. That is a 22-percentage-point difference in the survey results, not a finding that the views of every member of either party are the same.
Some respondents had used or planned AI election searches
The survey also asked about AI use or planned use for the upcoming election. Twenty-one percent said they had used or planned to use AI to find information about a candidate or ballot issue. Smaller shares reported use or planned use for practical voting information or decisions:
| Election-related purpose | Used or planned to use AI |
|---|---|
| Information about a candidate or ballot issue | 21% |
| Information about how to vote | 12% |
| Information about how to register | 10% |
| Deciding whom to vote for | 10% |
Those answers combine people who said they had already used AI with those who planned to use it. They do not show how many ultimately used AI, whether the information was accurate, or whether it affected anyone’s voting decision.
NORC conducted the survey through its probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel among 2,140 U.S. adults age 18 or older. The overall margin of sampling error was plus or minus 2.9 percentage points. The reported party groups had separate margins of plus or minus 4.3 points for Democrats, including leaners, and plus or minus 4.7 points for Republicans, including leaners. The findings are estimates of public opinion, not counts of adults holding each view.
The poll presents a snapshot of opinion ahead of the midterm election. Its findings report what adults said about AI and possible government priorities; they do not themselves change government policy or impose requirements.
Sources
- Most adults think AI is developing too fast, The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research
- September 2026 Topline: AI, The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research
- Most Americans say AI is moving too fast, AP-NORC poll finds, Associated Press
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