"For the tech of the future, generative AI sure is making a lot of enemies in a very short time. If 2023 was the year of AI's awakening and 2024 the year of its frantic adoption, then it's safe to say 2025 will be remembered as the year it all came crashing back down to reality. From boardrooms to classrooms, from game studios to Senate committees, this will be the year many remember as the one when AI finally wore out its welcome."
"For many small towns throughout the US, the AI boom has come wafting in on a cloud of noxious smog that critics say is leading to to increased cancer risk and hostile takeovers of local infrastructure, not to mention skyrocketing electricity bills. That being the case, it's no surprise a huge number of rural communities have spent the year organizing and agitating to shut down the tech industry's data center projects wherever they pop up."
"Beyond the data centers, AI is helping corporations increase the rate at which they exploit workers - both on the job and at home. Back in spring, for example, Visa announced plans to let AI agents loose on customers' financial information, one of many companies to experiment with a pivot to AI customer service. Of course, most Americans would rather bash their heads against the wall then talk to an AI customer service agent - not that there's much of a difference, they'd argue"
Generative AI's rapid expansion provoked strong backlash across public and private sectors, with 2025 becoming a year of backlash and retrenchment. Rural communities confronted data center proposals over pollution, health, infrastructure control, and rising electricity costs, organizing to block new projects. Corporations deployed AI to automate customer service and process sensitive financial data, raising consumer hostility and privacy concerns. Employers used AI to accelerate monitoring and intensify work both onsite and at home. Bad actors leveraged realistic synthetic content for scams, art forgery, and racist influence, increasing harms and complicating moderation. Public sentiment turned sharply negative toward AI-driven products and services.
Read at Futurism
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