Veteran AI analyst: after 35 years, AI's reputation problem is a PR failure
DavidLinthicum · x · 2026-09-06
AI analyst David Linthicum reflects on 35 years in the field: in the 1990s saying you worked in AI made you the star of the dinner party; in 2026 AI gets blamed for job losses, soaring power bills, and emissions. He argues the technology's core ideas haven't changed—only its power—while hype cycles and overconfident CEOs promising to cure cancer and end poverty turned public sentiment against the tech itself rather than the messaging. AI, he says, is a force multiplier, and the industry needs honest communicators to rein in billion-dollar marketing machines.
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