FT column warns of voter backlash if AI growth is not slowed

In short: A Financial Times columnist argues that if governments do not slow and manage AI, public anger could turn into protests and even attacks on AI infrastructure.

What's going on

Camilla Cavendish at the Financial Times compares today’s AI tensions to the Luddites, a group of 19th-century workers who smashed factory machines they believed threatened their jobs. She suggests a modern version could target data centres, which are large buildings full of computers that run AI systems (like warehouses for computing power).

The column says public trust in AI has dropped since ChatGPT arrived. It cites YouGov polling that nearly three quarters of Americans feel AI development is moving too fast, and that about half think AI will reduce people’s ability to form meaningful relationships. In the UK, it points to a King’s College London study that found only 24 percent of people think AI is positive for humanity, and that a third of university students think job losses could come fast enough to trigger unrest.

The piece also highlights energy use. It notes that data centres in Ireland use 22 percent of the country’s electricity, up from 5 percent in 2015. It also cites an estimate from the Center for Biological Diversity that, if trends continue, data centres could take up almost half of the US power sector’s “allowed” emissions under national climate goals.

What to watch

The column points to early signs of guardrails, or safety limits, such as Anthropic saying one model was too dangerous to release, and governments discussing AI safety rules. The author’s main warning is that if job worries, scams, and environmental costs keep rising while benefits feel concentrated among a few companies, political pressure on AI, and on new data centre construction, is likely to grow.

Source: Financial Times