Half of Americans Now Fear AI Will Take Their Jobs, Study Finds

Public anxiety about AI-driven job displacement has surged

Nearly half of Americans now fear artificial intelligence could eliminate their jobs, according to longitudinal research from Texas Tech University that has tracked public attitudes toward AI since 2016.

The study, led by Austin Lee, an assistant professor of journalism and creative media industries, found that 49.2% of survey respondents in 2025 expressed fear that AI would take their job—a dramatic increase from just 16.6% when the research began nine years earlier.

The timing of the initial survey matters. In 2016, consumer AI was limited largely to voice assistants like Siri and Alexa. ChatGPT didn't exist, and generative AI had not yet entered public consciousness. As these technologies became more visible and capable, public concern grew proportionally.

COVID-19 temporarily suppressed AI anxiety

The research revealed an unexpected pattern during the pandemic years. Milad Jalalian Ebrahimi, a master's student and research assistant on the project, noted that fear of AI-related job loss actually decreased during COVID-19 as disease concerns dominated public attention. Once the acute health crisis subsided and ChatGPT launched publicly, AI anxiety rebounded sharply.

The researchers emphasized that their findings reflect psychological states rather than actual employment data. When they compared fear levels against economic indicators like unemployment rates, they found no significant correlation between the two measures.

Demographic gaps in AI anxiety are widening

The study uncovered troubling disparities in who fears AI most. Women and ethnic minorities consistently reported higher levels of anxiety than white men throughout the research period. More concerning, the gender gap has nearly doubled over the decade.

"This is about how AI can strengthen existing inequalities," Lee explained.

Education-based differences have followed a different trajectory. Before 2024, people with less formal education expressed greater fear than those with advanced degrees. That gap has since narrowed considerably, with both blue-collar and white-collar workers now reporting similar anxiety levels regardless of educational background.

Why it matters

These findings arrive as business leaders accelerate AI adoption across industries without clear data on actual workforce displacement. The widening fear gap among women and minorities suggests AI anxiety may compound existing workplace inequalities, potentially affecting career decisions, salary negotiations, and professional development investments. For technology companies and policymakers, understanding these demographic patterns is essential for addressing legitimate concerns while avoiding panic that outpaces reality.

Historical context suggests fears may moderate

Both researchers noted that resistance to emerging technologies follows predictable patterns. Ebrahimi drew parallels to the introduction of computers, when initial public resistance eventually gave way to widespread adoption.

Current employment data supports their measured perspective. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports unemployment at 4.1%, with more than 160,000 jobs added across all sectors in August. Concrete evidence of AI-driven job displacement remains limited.

These details were first reported by KCBD in Lubbock, Texas.