Proptech executives and Silicon Valley leaders may be stoked about the rapid rise of artificial intelligence. But how the general public feels about it may be quite different.
AI experts and the public are increasingly out of sync on the technology’s trajectory, according to Stanford University’s latest annual AI report, released Monday. The findings point to a growing undercurrent of anxiety and frustration — particularly in the U.S. — around how AI will reshape core parts of daily life, including jobs, wages and the economy.
That unease is becoming more evident in public opinion data. A recent Gallup poll found sentiment toward AI turning more negative, with Gen Z, surprisingly, leading the shift. Younger respondents reported feeling less hopeful and more frustrated about the technology, even as roughly half say they use AI tools daily or weekly.
For many inside the tech industry, the backlash has been unexpected.
Much of the conversation among AI leaders has centered on long-term risks such as Artificial General Intelligence, a hypothetical form of AI capable of matching or surpassing human cognition.
But outside that bubble, concerns among the general public are far more immediate: whether AI will erode incomes, disrupt job stability or drive up energy costs as power-hungry data centers expand.
As the real estate industry rapidly adopts AI technologies, the new research and opinion data could have implications for an industry already grappling with public perception issues around transparency and affordability.
The darker edge of AI frustration
The disconnect has been especially visible in the online response to recent attacks targeting OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s home. On platforms like X, some AI insiders expressed shock at social media comments that appeared to praise the incident.
The tone of those responses echoes earlier moments of online backlash, including reactions following the 2024 shooting of a UnitedHealthcare CEO and the more recent arson attack on a Kimberly-Clark warehouse by a worker protesting low wages.
Authorities say the 29-year-old man charged in connection with the fire that destroyed the Kimberly-Clark warehouse in California was allegedly driven by anti-capitalist beliefs and compared himself to Luigi Mangione.
Mangione is accused of killing Brian Thompson, the UnitedHealthcare CEO, who was shot and killed in New York City on Dec. 4, 2024. After a nationwide manhunt, Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania five days later.
Mangione’s legal defense fund has raised significant money — reportedly more than $1 million — largely through crowdfunding platforms such as GiveSendGo. Supporters have said their contributions are intended to support his legal defense and, in some cases, reflect concerns about the healthcare system and due process.
In each case, a subset of social media commentary about these anti-capitalists drifted beyond criticism into something more combustible, with some posts framing their violent incidents as justified — or even calling for more radical action.
The pattern suggests a darker undercurrent of frustration that extends well beyond AI itself, but is increasingly being projected onto the industry and its leaders.
America isn’t sold on AI’s future
Stanford University’s report helps explain where that growing negativity is coming from, pulling together sentiment data from multiple sources to map the widening perception gap around AI.
One datapoint stands out. A recent study from the Pew Research Center found that just 10 percent of Americans feel more excited than concerned about AI’s expanding role in daily life. By contrast, 56 percent of AI experts said they expect the technology to have a positive impact on the U.S. over the next two decades.
That divide becomes even sharper in specific sectors. In healthcare, for example, 84 percent of experts believe AI will deliver largely positive outcomes over the next 20 years. Only 44 percent of the general public agrees.
The gap highlights a fundamental disconnect: While experts tend to focus on long-term potential, much of the public remains unconvinced about how those benefits will materialize in everyday life.
How AI’s trust gap is hitting real estate
The trust divide around AI is already playing out in real estate in tangible ways, most notably in the backlash against algorithmic rent-setting tools.
Software platforms like RealPage have been the focal point of lawsuits and regulatory scrutiny, with critics arguing that AI-driven pricing models may be driving up rents and reducing competition.
For apartment operators, these tools are framed as data-driven optimization. For renters and regulators, they’re increasingly seen as opaque systems that influence housing costs in ways that feel unfair. That perception gap has fueled lawsuits, multimillion-dollar settlements and even outright bans on certain types of pricing software in cities and states across the U.S.
The same dynamic is surfacing in other areas of the real estate industry. Policymakers are exploring rules around AI-generated listing content, while consumers grow more wary of how images, descriptions and even communications are being produced.
Consumer Reports is backing California’s AB 2025, a bill that would require landlords to clearly disclose when rental listing images have been materially altered and provide access to the original, unedited photos.
The proposal comes as more property owners turn to AI to significantly enhance — or, in some cases, transform — how their units appear online, raising concerns about misleading marketing. If passed, AB 2025 would establish baseline guardrails for the use of AI in listings, aiming to curb deceptive practices while still allowing responsible use of the technology.
Even among landlords and agents using AI tools, there’s a noticeable hesitancy and a recognition that outputs need to be checked and that overreliance can create risk.
These examples show that in real estate, AI is, in some cases, becoming a flashpoint for concerns around fairness, transparency and control in an already sensitive market.
AI could deepen distrust if handled poorly
For the real estate industry, the takeaway is straightforward: AI adoption can be a trust problem.
As real estate companies and brokerages roll out AI across leasing, underwriting, marketing and property operations, they’re doing so in an environment where many buyers, sellers, renters and even employees may be increasingly skeptical of how the technology affects their livelihoods and daily lives.
That means the winners may not be the firms with the most advanced AI tools, but the ones that can clearly communicate value, maintain human touchpoints and demonstrate tangible, near-term benefits.
It also raises a reputational risk. In a sector already grappling with affordability concerns and public scrutiny, poorly communicated or overly aggressive AI deployment could reinforce existing frustrations, especially if it’s perceived as reducing jobs, increasing rents or making housing more impersonal.
