65% of workers have avoided using AI for moral, environmental, privacy or other reasons: CNBC survey

Neary two-thirds of workers have at some point avoided using AI because of moral, environmental, privacy, accuracy or other concerns, according to the CNBC and SurveyMonkey Quarterly AI and Jobs Survey published Tuesday. The survey, conducted from April 17 to 21, polled 3,597 students and workers across the U.S. Of the respondents, 3,365 said they were employed and 232 said they were students. When asked if they'd ever avoided using AI, 36% of students polled said they'd done so over environmental concerns, compared to 19% of workers. The environmental impact of AI data centers includes significant water and land use , energy consumption and heat waste. In addition, 36% of students said they avoided using AI out of moral or ethical concerns about the technology, versus 28% of workers. Some Gen Zers want to abstain from AI use because they worry about AI plagiarizing or stealing work made by people, says Sneha Revanur, the 21-year-old founder and president of AI policy nonprofit Encode AI, who was not involved in the survey. Others are "concerned about what it means for critical thinking and creativity," she adds, or "view it as this attack on humanness." When it comes to practical applications, 37% of students and 26% of workers said they'd avoided AI because it isn't accurate or useful. …