Americans Overwhelmingly Support Pro-Human Principles on AI

Reviewed

National

Study Details

Pollster: Future of Life Institute
Sponsor: Future of Life Institute
Sponsor Category: Advocacy
Field Dates: Feb 19, 2026 – Feb 20, 2026
Published: Mar 1, 2026
Geography: National
Sample Size: n=1,004
Margin of Error: +/- 4.7%
Mode: Online
Population: Likely voters

View Source

Questions (19)

Q1. Statement A: AI serves people without replacing them; humans stay in charge; society prevents power concentration; children and relationships protected; strong privacy rights; companies held accountable. Statement B: AI progress moves fast, heavy rules avoided, safety from engineering/testing rather than regulation, markets decide.

Tradeoffai_governanceregulationhuman_control

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Pro-human approach	80%
Fast development, minimal regulation	10%
Not sure	10%

Response	%	n
Pro-human approach	89%

Response	%	n
Pro-human approach	73%

Q2. AI must stay under human control with people deciding delegation and retaining shutdown ability vs. giving AI more independence for speed and scale.

Tradeoffhuman_controlai_autonomy

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Human control with oversight	77%
More AI independence	11%
Not sure	12%

Q3. Powerful AI systems must have mechanisms allowing humans to promptly shut them down.

Support/Opposehuman_controlshutdownsafety

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	83%

Q4. Humans should have authority and capacity to understand, guide, limit, and override AI systems.

Support/Opposehuman_controloversight

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	85%

Q5. AI systems must not self-replicate, autonomously self-improve, resist shutdown, or control weapons of mass destruction.

Support/Opposesafetyautonomous_aiweapons

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	76%

Q6. Development of superintelligence should be prohibited until broad scientific consensus exists it can be done safely and controllably.

Support/Opposesuperintelligencemoratoriumsafety

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	69%
Disagree	9%
Not sure	22%

Q7. Companies must not exploit children through AI creating emotional attachment/leverage vs. allowing such systems.

Tradeoffchildrenprotectionexploitation

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	77%

Q8. AI should not replace meaningful relationships (family, friends, faith, community); children deserve extra protection vs. AI allowed as tutors/coaches/companions if desired.

Tradeoffrelationshipschildrensocial_impact

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Restrict AI companion relationships	73%
Allow unrestricted AI companions	15%
Not sure	12%

Q9. AI chatbots should undergo pre-deployment safety testing for risks like increased suicidal ideation and mental health decline—similar to drug testing.

Support/Opposesafety_testingmental_healthregulation

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	74%

Q10. AI-generated content that could be mistaken for human content must be clearly labeled.

Support/Opposetransparencylabelingdeepfakes

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	77%

Q11. AI should clearly identify itself as artificial and not claim experiences it does not have.

Support/Opposetransparencydisclosure

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	78%

Q12. AI systems should not cause addiction or compulsive use through manipulation, validation, or attachment formation.

Support/Opposeaddictionmanipulationprotection

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	74%

Q13. Prevent AI monopolies and ensure benefits are shared broadly vs. concentration is natural and policy should not punish size.

Tradeoffmonopolypower_concentrationantitrust

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Prevent monopolies, share benefits broadly	69%
Allow concentration for faster development	16%
Not sure	15%

Q14. AI builders must be responsible for harms with clear safety standards and honest reporting vs. accountability focused on negligence/fraud with light oversight.

Tradeoffaccountabilityliabilityregulation

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Strong accountability with oversight	72%
Light oversight, narrow negligence focus	15%
Not sure	13%

Q15. If an AI system causes harm, it should be possible to determine why and who is responsible.

Support/Opposeaccountabilitytraceabilitytransparency

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	77%

Q16. Highly autonomous AI systems should require pre-development review and independent oversight with genuine authority—not just self-regulation.

Support/Opposeregulationoversightindependent_review

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	77%

Q17. AI companies must not be allowed undue influence over the rules that govern them.

Support/Opposeregulatory_capturecorporate_influence

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	72%

Q18. There should be criminal penalties for executives responsible for prohibited child-targeted AI systems or ones causing catastrophic harm.

Support/Opposecriminal_liabilitychildrenaccountability

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	77%

Q19. AI companies must provide clear, accurate, and honest representations of systems capabilities and limitations.

Support/Opposetransparencyhonestycorporate_accountability

Crosstabs

All voters

Response	%	n
Agree	83%