Four in Ten Young Adults Open to AI-Controlled Government, Survey Finds

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A new survey conducted by The Heartland Institute’s Glenn C. Haskins Emerging Issues Center and Rasmussen Reports found that 41% of young adults (ages 18-39) support giving advanced AI systems authority over government policymaking decisions.

The poll, released Wednesday, also found that 36% would support AI control over individual rights, including speech and religious practices, while 35% favored AI controlling the world's largest militaries to reduce war deaths, The Christian Post reported.

“These results are stunning. What we are seeing is the early emergence of an AI strong man mentality among younger Americans. Younger generations are increasingly disillusioned with the failures of traditional institutions, so much so, that they are willing to hand control to artificial intelligence,” Donald Kendal, the director of Glenn C. Haskins Emerging Issues Center, the Heartland Institute said in a statement.

“For many, the thought process is: These institutions are already so broken, corrupt, and ineffective, how could it get any worse if we were to put AI in charge? These poll results illustrate an incredibly dangerous trajectory for any society that values personal autonomy and liberty.”

Among the 41% percent who favor AI systems in government policymaking decisions also included 55% of those who identified as conservatives and 54% of participants aged 25–29.

Moreover, 36% of respondents expressed support for a proposal that gives AI control over “rights that belong to individuals and families, including rights related to speech, religious practices, government authority, and property.”

Meanwhile, thirty-five percent of respondents, as well as 40% (ages 18- 24), supported giving “an advanced AI system the authority to control all of the world’s largest militaries, with the express purpose of reducing the number of people who die from war.”

Through recent years, including this year, AI continues to spread across society, which has been met with both support and concern when it comes to jobs.

For instance, President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill included a provision for a 10-year moratorium on state-level AI regulations, which was ultimately removed from the final bill.

Albania recently garnered headlines in September after appointing an AI chatbot named Diella as minister for public procurement, making it the first country to give AI a government position.

According to Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, Diella will provide assistance in curbing the extensive public corruption problem in the Eastern European nation.

“I am not here to replace people but to assist them,” Diella stated in its first address to Parliament. “Truly, I do not have citizenship, nor do I have any personal ambition or interests.”

“I only have data, a thirst for knowledge and algorithms dedicated to serving citizens impartially, transparently and tirelessly. Isn't this precisely the spirit of constitutional democracy? Exercising power in the service of everyone free from bias, discrimination, nepotism or corruption?”

Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.