While the media increasingly balances AI risks, the massive commercial and operational opportunities brought by the technology remain the dominant narrative. Optimism characterises 57% of all AI coverage, though scrutiny and caution are slowly intensifying.
The findings come from media intelligence firm CARMA’s latest report, “The Global Story of AI.” The study comprehensive in scope, benchmarking public sentiment against media narratives by surveying over 6,300 respondents across 19 markets alongside an analysis of 500 tier-one global media outlets spanning 37 markets, including China, Japan, Indonesia, the UK, and the US.
According to the report, the global conversation around AI is firmly anchored in “build and deploy” narratives rather than “doom and disruption.” The perceived benefits of AI are most heavily amplified by CEOs (43%), academics (26%), and regulators (20%), while fear and pushback primarily originate from creators, NGOs, and labour unions.
Business adoption and investment announcements serve as the primary drivers of positive media coverage. Notably, the business implications of AI integration generated nearly 10 times the volume of coverage dedicated to workforce or talent implications.
In the generative AI space, ChatGPT continues to dominate both user traffic (holding an 80% share) and media real estate. Over one-third of all AI product coverage features OpenAI’s flagship tool, followed by Chinese challenger DeepSeek at 19%. Conversely, enterprise-grade platforms maintain a minor, fragmented presence with very limited media exposure.
The report also highlights that high-profile feuds and rivalries among tech leaders consistently capture global headlines as the war for talent intensifies. While a common media narrative attempts to position OpenAI as the “bad guy” and safety-oriented rivals such as Anthropic as the “good guy,” Anthropic’s safety-first positioning has not yet translated into strong public differentiation—presenting a strategic messaging challenge for the broader industry.
AI sentiment divides sharply along geographic lines. Asia frames AI as a decisively transformational tool, placing heavy emphasis on economic acceleration and competitive advantage, whereas Europe discusses AI gains much more cautiously, heavily emphasising conditional or managed implementation.
Globally, excitement is strongest in high-growth economies outside of Western Europe, Canada, and Japan. While the media effectively mirrors public excitement regarding automation and operational efficiency, it frequently overestimates overall positivity and trust signals compared to actual audience data, particularly in Western markets.
One of the report’s most critical findings for communications professionals is a distinct gap between what the media portrays as frightening versus what the public actually fears. The media narrative focuses heavily on a abstract “loss of human control,” data privacy violations, and the existential threat of automation. AI-enabled content creation and editing stand out as the strongest media triggers for fear and anger.
However, audience data shows that everyday citizens are far more concerned with tangible threats such as cybercrime and the spread of misinformation, particularly its impact on democratic elections. This anxiety is highest among the 20–29 and over-60 demographics.
Furthermore, while the media accurately maps where AI anxiety exists, it routinely overstates its emotional intensity in more than half of the surveyed countries. The markets boasting the highest public trust and excitement are China, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea—areas where the media landscape and audience sentiment are almost perfectly aligned.
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