Veleonis and co/efficient released “Building Faster Than Trust”, a survey of 1,566 registered voters on eight major technology and AI companies and America’s AI buildout.
In the race for scale and national competitiveness, the AI industry made its case to investors and policymakers, but in a game dominated by county and local chokepoints, the industry left a gaping hole – convincing voters to back their cause.
Amazon, Apple, Google and Microsoft, brands rooted in commerce, devices, search and productivity, are viewed positively by an average 20-point margin. Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI and X/xAI, rooted in AI, social media or both, are viewed negatively by 20 to 42 points. One group has reputation to protect; the other has trust to earn.
Voters readily name trust leaders in established categories: 54% choose Google for online search, 34%Apple for phone privacy, and 30% Microsoft for productivity software. On responsible AI, most name no company at all. Key findings from the report:
- Fifty-nine percent choose none of the eight companies or are unsure which one they trust most to develop AI responsibly; Google leads at 10%.
- Seventy-five percent choose none or are unsure which of the companies they trust most to operate data centers responsibly; 33% would oppose a nearby project regardless of details; half name electricity, water or other environmental costs.
- Thirty-four percent cite job loss and 32% misinformation when describing how AI could help or harm them.
- All eight executives are viewed negatively; Satya Nadella is 3 points below even, Dario Amodei -33, Sam Altman -51, and Mark Zuckerberg -66.
The AI industry lacks a broad public constituency: Sixty-eight percent are more concerned than excited about AI, and 60% use AI tools rarely or never. Although 58% favor more federal regulation, with cross-partisan support, 83% distrust Congress to regulate it responsibly. That tension shifts pressure to states deciding data center incentives, siting and utility costs.
That exposure reaches data center developers, investors, utilities, construction firms and public officials. “Trust is becoming a deployment constraint for the AI industry,” said Mark Drapeau, founding partner of Veleonis. “Capital can finance a data center and technology can power it, but neither secures public permission. Companies must answer who benefits, who pays and who is accountable.”
“The industry is selling productivity. Voters are asking about jobs, misinformation, water and electricity,” said Ryan Munce, president of co/efficient. “That mismatch becomes political at a statehouse, utility commission or county board, where leaders will be judged on the questions voters are actually asking.
(Veleonis is a company that “advises leaders where technology, markets, politics and public opinion collide.” co/efficient provides polling, analytics and messaging for political and public affairs leaders.)
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