Widespread anxiety about AI is not just about job displacement but a deeper 'crisis of agency.' It forces a philosophical question at a societal level: If machines can perform our creative and intellectual tasks, what is the fundamental purpose of a human being?

The backlash against AI is more than economic anxiety. It's a profound fear of "erasure," where core human identities—worker, creator, parent, partner—are threatened with replacement. This existential threat to what it means to be human fuels the resistance.

Many people's negative opinions on AI-generated content stem from a deep-seated fear of their jobs becoming obsolete. This emotional reaction will fade as AI content becomes indistinguishable from human-created content, making the current debate a temporary, fear-based phenomenon.

Top AI models are now solving major open problems in mathematics, leading some in the field to feel their core purpose is being automated away. This isn't just about tools; it's a profound identity crisis for a discipline built on human ingenuity and the pursuit of solving theorems.

The dot-com era, despite bubble fears, was characterized by widespread public optimism. In stark contrast, the current AI boom is met with significant anxiety, with over 30% of Americans fearing AI could end humanity. This level of dread marks a fundamental shift in public sentiment toward new technology.

OpenAI's Astra model solving major open problems in mathematics has led to a profound sense of despair among some experts. The sentiment, described as "The dark night of mathematics," reflects a fear that AI is not just automating tasks but devaluing a deeply human field of intellectual discovery.

The unpopularity of AI is not driven by sci-fi scenarios but by the immediate, personal question: 'What's going to happen to me?' Leaders have failed to explain how AI will concretely affect the jobs and opportunities of everyday workers.

Public backlash against AI has deep psychological roots. It's not just about job loss, but a fundamental fear of power imbalances favoring a few. It also challenges humanity's central role, a disruption to the human ego similar to how the Copernican revolution challenged the church.

As AI surpasses human capabilities, the real danger is a societal paralysis where people stop creating and learning, believing their efforts are pointless. We may need to consciously choose to do things ourselves, even sub-optimally, to preserve our humanity.