Many Democrats and Republicans favor establishing retraining programs focused on artificial intelligence for workers and providing ongoing lessons, according to a Northeastern University survey report released Friday on public sentiments about AI. Sixty-four percent of Republican respondents and 63 percent of Democratic respondents support job retraining designed to help workers gain the skills required to take on AI-heavy jobs. This could apply to both blue collar and white collar jobs, the researchers said. Many survey respondents also said they supported the creation of tax-advantaged saving accounts that workers could use to pay for job training and educational opportunities. Fifty-seven percent of Republican survey respondents and 56 percent of Democrats said they supported establishing “worker-owned retraining accounts” that people could keep from job to job.
The emergence of AI and its rapidly increasing use worldwide has led to widespread concerns and demonstrations about data centers and other matters. This week, demonstrators in more than 50 cities and college campuses across the United States gathered to call for a pause on the development of AI technologies, according to media reports.
