Do Americans Think AI Will Strengthen or Weaken Our Information Ecosystem?
We live in a time of informational abundance. Never before have humans had such immediate access to so much knowledge, opinion, research, personal narrative, and creative expression. The marketplace of ideas has expanded dramatically, creating unprecedented opportunities for learning and exchange. This is awesome in so many ways!
But this expansion brings important questions about how we process, evaluate, use, and share information. How do we separate truth from falsehood? How do we ensure diverse viewpoints receive fair consideration? How do we foster environments where productive disagreement leads to better understanding rather than deeper division? And how do we defend against foreign adversaries and malicious actors who manipulate content or create fake content to exploit our freedoms and undermine individual and societal wellbeing?
Artificial intelligence stands at the center of these questions. AI systems are already transforming how we discover, consume, and evaluate information. These technologies offer powerful tools that could either strengthen or weaken the marketplace of ideas. The future impact of AI on our information ecosystem will depend on how we design, deploy, and interact with these systems.
At the Human Flourishing Lab, we're interested in understanding how Americans perceive these developments and possibilities. Examining public attitudes provides critical insights into the psychological and cultural factors that help shape our relationship with technology. If we hope to harness AI's potential for enhancing human progress and flourishing, we need to understand people's hopes, fears, expectations, and experiences regarding these tools.
In our latest Progress Pulse survey, we asked a nationally representative sample of over 2,000 U.S. adults about their expectations for AI's impact on our information environment. Specifically, we presented respondents with two contrasting visions. The first envisions AI strengthening our information ecosystem by helping identify diverse viewpoints, enabling more effective evaluation of competing claims, and creating environments that support free discussion. This perspective sees AI as a tool that empowers individuals in their search for truth and facilitates healthier public discourse. The second vision suggests AI will weaken our information ecosystem by creating echo chambers, making evaluation of competing claims more difficult, and fostering environments prone to censorship. This view positions AI as diminishing our ability to find truth and engage in productive discussions about complex topics.
Our findings reveal that Americans are almost perfectly divided on this question. Approximately 49% believe AI will strengthen our information ecosystem, while 51% believe it will weaken it. This split is similar to previous Progress Pulse survey results on Americans' predictions regarding the future of technology and human progress.Â
The demographic patterns in our data reveal interesting insights. Men tend to be more optimistic about AI's potential, with 55% believing it will strengthen our information ecosystem, compared to 44% of women. Age appears to be a significant factor, with younger adults generally more optimistic than older Americans. Most notably, 56% of those aged 25-44 see AI strengthening our information ecosystem, while only 41% of those 65 and older share this outlook.Â
Interestingly, political affiliation shows virtually no difference in attitudes toward AI's impact. Democrats, Republicans, and Independents all show similar response patterns, with roughly half of each group expecting AI to strengthen our information ecosystem and half expecting it to weaken it. This represents yet another example of how, despite often being treated as the main dividing line in American society, political labels frequently fail to capture the more nuanced psychological factors that shape our attitudes regarding major societal and global issues.
The challenge we face is not simply technological but deeply human. How do we harness these powerful tools while preserving the conditions necessary for freedom and flourishing? Our answers to such questions will help determine whether AI ultimately strengthens or weakens our shared information environment.
You can find more results from this latest Progress Pulse survey as well as previous surveys here.
Have a great weekend!
Clay