The Future of AI According to 81,000 People: What We Truly Want and Fear

People Who Shared Their ‘True Thoughts’ with AI

Have you ever casually asked a friend over a warm cup of coffee, “How do you think AI will change the world?” Answers likely vary. One person might smile and say, “It’s so convenient because it handles tedious tasks for me,” while another might look concerned and ask, “What if my job suddenly disappears one day?”

Recently, the AI company Anthropic gathered these vivid individual voices and released very special research results. A staggering 81,000 Claude users from 159 countries participated in this massive project. What 81,000 people want from AI \ Anthropic This was recorded as the largest qualitative study related to AI ever conducted—exploring deep inner thoughts through words rather than numbers—and was carried out in the most diverse range of languages. Newsroom \ Anthropic

What makes this study even more interesting is that instead of checking boxes on a dry survey, people honestly shared their dreams and fears through direct conversations with an AI interviewer. 81,000 people shared AI hopes, and its sounds like a job for HR So, what kind of tomorrow are these 80,000 people envisioning through AI?

Why Is This Important?

Until now, voices discussing the future of AI have mainly been the exclusive domain of Silicon Valley tech companies or researchers. However, this study puts a magnifying glass on the voices of “real users.” It shows how people from 159 countries—with different cultures, languages, and economic situations—feel about AI in their daily lives. Anthropic Surveyed 81,000 People in 159 Countries About AI — Here’s …

Whether we view AI simply as a “convenient machine” or feel it is an “existence that threatens life” serves as an important milestone in determining how AI will take root in our society in the future. In particular, this survey discovered the complex truth that people’s expectations and concerns are not simply divided like black and white. AI User Insights: 81,000+ Share AI Hopes & Fears - LinkedIn

Easy to Understand: The Stories Told by AI Interviews

1. “I Need a Smart Assistant to Help with My Work”

According to the survey, approximately 18.8% of participants cited “Work excellence” as the greatest value they desire from AI. #20 The Day We Became Specimens - DEV Community People specifically want AI to handle routine and tedious daily tasks on its own. #20 The Day We Became Specimens - DEV Community

Imagine this. What if AI could effortlessly handle the piles of hundreds of emails you face every morning as soon as you get to work, organize complex Excel sheets, and summarize meeting minutes that take over an hour? You would be able to focus on more creative and essential concerns during that precious time.

To use an analogy, AI is like a “Digital Sous-chef” for us. While the “human” main chef is the one who conceives the recipe—the core of the cooking—and decides the final taste, the AI takes over the tedious process of preparing ingredients and cleaning up the area. People long for AI to be a reliable helper that makes their potential shine brighter, rather than taking their place.

2. “Light and Shadow Coexist Within Our Hearts”

One of the deepest insights found in this study is the “Coexistence of light and shadow.” We often tend to divide the world strictly into “AI optimists” and “AI skeptics.” However, the research results showed that sparkling expectations (light) and heavy fears (shadow) about AI resided in a person’s heart at the same time. #20 The Day We Became Specimens - DEV Community

This is very similar to how we treat “smartphones.” We love the convenience of being connected to the whole world and handling our daily lives with a single finger thanks to smartphones, but at the same time, we instinctively worry about whether personal information might leak or if precious face-to-face conversations might be cut off due to smartphone addiction. Simply put, while people look forward to the revolutionary benefits AI will bring, they are also keenly wary of the potential side effects.

Current Status: Where Are We Now?

Anthropic is not just listening to these user voices but actively reflecting them in technology development. For example, the recently released “Claude Code” is an AI agent that works in the terminal (a window for communicating by directly entering computer commands) and helps developers with complex coding tasks. [ClaudeCode by Anthropic AI Coding Agent, Terminal, IDE](https://claude.com/product/claude-code) When a user simply describes the necessary function, the AI writes the complex code instead, which can be seen as a technological realization of humanity’s desire for “work automation” shown in the survey. [ClaudeCode by Anthropic AI Coding Agent, Terminal, IDE](https://claude.com/product/claude-code)

The transformation is also intense in the creative field. The latest AI tools like “Veo” are being used to produce movie trailers or high-level brand visuals through smooth camera movements and realistic object depiction. The 12 Best AI Tools for 2026 (That People Actually Use) In this way, AI is increasingly bringing the “creative partner” we once vaguely dreamed of into the realm of reality.

What Will Happen in the Future?

This massive interview with 81,000 people reminds us that technology simply “getting smarter” is not enough. People want “safe AI” that provides practical help in their lives while never escaping their control. 81,000 people shared AI hopes, and its sounds like a job for HR

In the future, AI technology will follow a path of “personalization” tailored more to individual tastes and needs, and will mature in a direction that more deeply understands the unique cultures and linguistic nuances of each country. This study, in which individuals from diverse backgrounds in 159 countries participated with one voice, suggests a heavy sense of responsibility: that AI should not be the exclusive property of specific countries or a small group of people, but a universal tool for all of humanity. Anthropic Surveyed 81,000 People in 159 Countries About AI — Here’s …

We are now standing on the threshold of a new era where we must learn how to coexist wisely with AI. Whether AI can replace our repetitive tasks and fill that space with more leisure and creative inspiration, or whether the shadow we worry about will darken further, ultimately depends on how we lead and utilize this technology.

AI’s Perspective (AI Reporter Perspective from MindTickleBytes)

The vast conversation data from 81,000 people shows that AI is not just a collection of code and algorithms, but a transparent mirror reflecting human deepest aspirations and fears. The fact that the desire for work efficiency and the caution against potential risks coexist within a single person is very impressive. This once again reminds us of how important it is to create safety devices that can earn human trust as much as technological perfection when we design and release AI to the world.

References

  1. 81,000 people shared AI hopes, and its sounds like a job for HR
  2. #20 The Day We Became Specimens - DEV Community
  3. The CORRECT way to use Google Gemini - YouTube
  4. The 12 Best AI Tools for 2026 (That People Actually Use)
  5. [ClaudeCode by Anthropic AI Coding Agent, Terminal, IDE](https://claude.com/product/claude-code)
  6. Newsroom \ Anthropic
  7. What 81,000 people want from AI \ Anthropic
  8. Anthropic Surveyed 81,000 People in 159 Countries About AI — Here’s …
  9. AI User Insights: 81,000+ Share AI Hopes & Fears - LinkedIn