The Download: AI’s popularity paradox and EmTech Future 2026
MIT Technology Review explores the paradox of public sentiment toward AI, noting that while users express growing skepticism and dislike for the technology, adoption rates continue to climb. The newsletter also highlights recent developments, including the Trump administration's creation of a 'Super Intelligence Force.'
Why it matters
Understanding the disconnect between public perception and actual usage is critical for the future of AI regulation and development.
Plus: Trump has unveiled a “Super Intelligence Force” to oversee AI.
This is today's edition of The Download , our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.
Over the summer I talked to the CEO of Springboards, a startup building an LLM designed to come up with a wide variety of responses . He said something that’s been stuck in my head since: “We often say that we’re a self-loathing AI company. We don’t know if we really like what we’re doing.” My reply? “I guess that makes me a self-loathing AI journalist.”
It was a joke! I love my job. But I do not love many of the things the technology I write about has become: warped by hype, steered by zealots, inescapable —and I’m far from alone.
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