AI Fear and Uncertainty

Posted: 2026-04-12

Author: Pranoy Dutta

"We mustn't be caught by surprise by our own advancing technology." -- Aldous Huxley

But we often are. Technologies like the printing press, the radio, the television, the internet, and the smartphone have all outpaced any sort of institutional understanding or regulation. In many ways this has to be the case. At least in the US, this is how our governing institions were designed. And how do you go about regulating a technology you don't understand?

This latest wave of AI is the next such technology which will outpace us, and we are not ready. I see disaster in the future. It's not hard to see.

While the most vocal proponents of AI promise that it will be a technology which will revolutionize all work, automating away grudgery while at the same time curing all ailments, I fear that most people do not see it this way. If you see AI as a gift to humanity, we should take a step back and think about how AI has affected the majority of people.

Say you are the average person:

• Maybe you've noticed that the internet you once knew is gone. That social media sites you visit are flooded with slop and bots. AI scrapers lead to sites you visit needing to put up migitations.
• Maybe you've noticed that you have to be more on guard when viewing images and videos. Sure photoshop has been around for a while but you realize that AI has dropped the skill required to generate realistic looking media. You worry about how this will affect our politics.
• Maybe you've noticed that almost every piece of software you use has annoying AI features shoved in your face. Maybe you've noticed that only a few of these features are actually any good.
• Maybe you've noticed that the S&P 500 is more than 7% just NVIDIA. Maybe you worry about this so called "AI bubble." You worry about it popping.
• Maybe you've noticed that our schools and universities aren't equipped to deal with ChatGPT powered cheating. Maybe you yourself are gen-AI-ing your way through school. Everyone else is doing it.
• Maybe you've noticed that you are more worried at work. You worry that your boss thinks that AI can automate you away. Maybe you worry that your boss expects double the output because AI will magically make you much more productive. Your boss probably doesn't understand Amdahl's law.
• Maybe you've noticed that you are worried about layoffs. Everyone's doing them now because of AI, right? If it's not AI, its probably AI spending.
• Maybe you've noticed that deepfakes are a huge problem that we haven't addressed yet. Maybe you realize that AI has automated revenge porn.

Oh and yeah I guess it's nice that AI makes it easy to generate an email or something.

People are not stupid. They realize that AI can lead to a great bifurcation. Even in tech circles people meme about "a permanent underclass." People worry that if AI succeeds, it will take away their jobs... and if it doesn't? If this "AI bubble" pops... They except to lose their jobs to a great recession. They expect to have their savings wiped out. People feel that our current configuration of society will lead to them not getting to really taste the fruits of AI. And when you fill a populous with fear, resentment, anger, uncertainty, and desperation... I wonder what happens.

I'm not saying that all of this is true. I'm saying that it doesn't take much to read the room and see that this is the general sentiment. And these feelings matter. If you want AI to be successful, if you really think it will do all these great things, we'll have to change the configuration of society to assure people that they will benefit. What this means, I'm not sure. I think a stronger welfare state is necessary.

• Pranoy