tech
Third of university students in Great Britain think AI job losses will cause social unrest, poll finds
Tracker of attitudes towards artificial intelligence also finds almost half of the public would prefer to avoid it
TL;DR
- One in three university students surveyed by King's College London believe AI will cause rapid job losses leading to civil unrest.
- 77% of students use AI at least a few times a month, with 27% using it daily, significantly higher than the 46% of workers who use it.
- Over half of students are convinced AI-driven job losses will be worse than in a normal recession.
- While 22% of the public fear AI causing civil unrest, this figure rises to 34% among university students.
- Despite job fears, 52% of male university students see AI as positive for humanity, compared to 24% of the general public.
- Nine out of 10 students encountered problems with AI, such as factual errors (37%) and made-up sources (31%), but fewer than half checked AI output before use.
- 78% of students would still choose university despite AI's growth, though 30% would opt for a different subject.
- Only 36% of students feel adequately prepared by universities for an AI-shaped job market, despite 60% believing universities are capable of it.