Why China's AI perception may be outpacing the US

A 15-country poll of 18,000 people by Public First found that public perception of AI dominance has shifted toward China over the US in 11 countries, with respondents in France, the UK, and Canada viewing China as the frontrunner. Meanwhile, American sentiment toward AI is souring, with only 31% expecting positive outcomes in 2026, down from 39% in 2024, while less than 10% of Chinese respondents worry about AI job displacement.

hough the US has long been the dominant tech superpower, the scales may be tipping in China's favor when it comes to AI — at least in terms of perception. A poll of around 18,000 people in 15 countries by research firm Public First found that public perception of AI dominance https://www.politico.com/news/2026/06/15/people-around-the-world-see-a-winner-on-ai-and-its-not-the-us-00960930 in 11 of the countries surveyed has begun to shift toward China over the US. According to the survey: - Respondents in Vietnam, India and Japan largely still believed that the US was leading the AI race over China. - Meanwhile, survey respondents in France, the United Kingdom and Canada all largely see China as the AI frontrunner. Respondents in Germany were the least confident in the US lead, with 23% seeing the country as ahead of China, compared to 46% holding the opposite sentiment. - Around 51% of American respondents perceived the US as the AI frontrunner, compared to 24% perceiving China as holding that position. But despite American respondents feeling confident about the country's AI position, opinions of the technology itself continue to sour https://www.thedeepview.com/articles/americans-souring-on-ai-new-data-shows . The research showed that the US population leads other countries polled in negative sentiment around AI, with the percentage of survey participants reporting that AI would have a positive outcome on society dropping from around 39% in 2024 to 31% in 2026. It's not the only signal that the public perception around AI is mixed in the US. A Gallup poll published in May found that an average of 7 in 10 Americans surveyed https://www.thedeepview.com/articles/americans-disdain-for-data-centers-hits-new-highs oppose data center construction in their area, citing environmental and quality-of-life concerns, as well as negative views of AI generally. And a Pew Research survey https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/03/12/key-findings-about-how-americans-view-artificial-intelligence/ published in March found that 50% of US adults were more concerned than excited about the tech last year, up from 37% in 2021, with many worried about its impact on creativity, relationships and jobs. The opposite is true in China, meanwhile: A survey from University College London in May found that AI uptake is going far better in China, with less than 10% of respondents https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3354861/less-10-chinese-public-worried-about-ai-destroying-jobs-survey worried that the tech will take jobs. Our Deeper View China approaches AI in a very different way than the US. The focus of its labs is largely on open-source and efficient models, rather than ultrapowerful proprietary models developed by a few leading labs. And while the country's open models used to lag behind models by US firms, according to research from Stanford University's Human-Centered AI institute, that gap has nearly closed https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report . So, along with its citizens having a substantially more positive view on the technology than Americans, its tech is beating US models in cost and efficiency without sacrificing performance. That's becoming attractive at a time when AI bills are squeezing enterprises https://www.thedeepview.com/articles/why-ai-s-tokenmaxxing-obsession-ran-out-of-steam . Pair that with the fact that study after study continues to paint AI as the harbinger of job loss and economic disruption in the US https://www.thedeepview.com/articles/the-ai-layoff-panic-is-outrunning-the-data , and the US government is placing limits on non-US citizens accessing Anthropic's https://www.thedeepview.com/articles/3-insights-from-latest-anthropic-us-standoff most powerful models. Taken together, these factors paint a picture that looks much more optimistic in China than in the US right now.