The AI revolution isn’t unfolding the way the headlines claim. New data from Pew, Gallup, OpenAI, and Anthropic reveals a far more contradictory story—one where rapid adoption collides with deep skepticism, and where AI’s most common uses are surprisingly ordinary.

In this episode, we break down five findings that challenge the popular narrative:

• Younger adults are the biggest AI skeptics.
• Most AI use is mundane knowledge work, not sci-fi invention.
• Users automate more but report higher satisfaction with collaborative AI.
• AI use is consistent across jobs but radically different across countries and states.
• Americans fear AI’s risks but overwhelmingly want more training—not more rules.

Taken together, these insights reveal a public that’s uncertain, conflicted, and still figuring out how to integrate AI into daily life. The real story isn’t about the technology’s pace of change—it's about how we choose to use it.

Find my work at www.civicinnovation.ai

In this episode, we explore how synthetic media—specifically deepfakes—are no longer just online hoaxes but are fast becoming a critical operational threat for emergency management. Drawing on Micah Gaudet’s piece “Deepfakes in Disasters: The New Operational Threat for Emergency Management,” we examine how disasters rely on speed, trust, and clear communication—and how manipulated audio-visual content can disrupt those foundations. linkedin.com

We discuss:

• Why deepfakes aren’t just about identity theft or memes—they may undermine the first hours of crisis response.

• How emergency operations built for clarity and coordination can be thrown off by credible but false imagery, false instructions, or mis-info timed to sow confusion.

• What public-safety and local government leaders must do now: build detection awareness, craft communication resilience, and update incident playbooks to include not just physical threats but synthetic media threats.

• Practical steps for cities and agencies to harden operations against deepfakes and regain control of trust when every second counts.

If you’re responsible for public safety, emergency planning, city management, or simply want to understand how tech-driven risks are evolving faster than policy and training—this episode offers a clear wake-up call and a path toward preparedness.

Follow my work at www.civicinnovation.ai

This episode breaks down a risk almost no one is talking about: what happens when AI works. Not when it fails—when it quietly reshapes judgment, accountability, and trust without anyone noticing. Micah Gaudet explains why AI’s “uninsured risk” isn’t bias or bad outputs, but the slow erosion of human oversight as organizations automate what used to depend on presence, discretion, and relationships. If you work in government, policy, or AI strategy, this will reframe how you think about risk—and what real stewardship looks like in an AI-driven world.

Follow my work at www.civicinnovation.ai