Anxiety from job displacement and workforce impact was low for most of the year. (Credit: ArtemisDiana/AdobeStock)

U.S. workers in 2025 were more concerned about privacy and regulation related to AI than they were about losing their jobs until rumors of major tech layoffs at Amazon surfaced in October, according to a joint study by Cybernews and nexos.ai.

Anxiety from job displacement and workforce impact was low for most of the year, the data showed, until the week of Oct. 19, when the Amazon job cuts spiked interest in AI job displacement and workforce impact 233% compared to the previous week — suggesting a shift in the level of public awareness related to AI job loss.

For most of 2025, U.S. workers felt AI privacy, control and regulation represented the greatest threat related to the technology. Between the weeks of May 25, and June 22, interest in AI regulation jumped 256%, while interest in data and privacy skyrocketed 325%.

According to the study, several events may have caused the surge in worker concern including:

  • Over 250 lawmakers called on Congress in June to remove a moratorium on state-level AI regulations.
  • The Texas Responsible AI Governance Act was also signed into law around that time.
  • California released a policy that highlighted the potential harms of AI, especially relating to privacy.
  • Microsoft released a report about prompt injection attacks, while Anthropic reported how their model was used to conduct a large-scale data theft campaign.

“As people learn how much of their personal and business data is used by AI tools, they are becoming more concerned about privacy,” said Emanuelis Norbutas, chief technology officer at nexos.ai.

“We are entering a time when curiosity about AI meets the reality of how it handles information,” he added. “Many users are unaware that every file they upload, every chat log, and every API call can share sensitive details with systems that they cannot fully control. As these tools become more powerful, it gets harder to track where that data goes. While being interested in AI is a good start, protecting your privacy requires action.”

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