Here’s how many guys really think about the Roman Empire

Here are some quick findings before we get started:

• There has been a slight uptick in streaming subscribers saying the prices they pay have increased in the past year, up to 73% – which tracks in that most major services have increased their prices.
• The reasons why they buy American are also unchanged, with factors like the perception of better quality (68%) or keeping money in their community (78%) ranking highly.
• Almost half now say they would wear a daily activity tracker, up from 37% in March.

Despite what TikTok says: No, men don’t think about the Roman empire

Why we asked: Because there was this viral thing on TikTok that claimed dudes think about the Roman Empire a lot. Then there were op-eds and think pieces. One of them tried to come up with the female equivalent and suggested Princess Diana, among others. So it was hard to resist seeing if TikTok celebs are representative in their constant thinking about the Roman Empire.

What we found: Shocker! No. Dudes do not think about the Roman Empire all the time. Or maybe they do? 20% still seems like a lot to say “often + sometimes” and it’s twice as many as women (9%). But no. No. Still not buying it. Only 6% of men say “often.” We’re calling this myth busted. But what do they think about? Sex (with a bit of a gender split 86% men to 63% women). And God (no gender split). More think about God often (48%) than sex (32%), however. Folks also think about climate change a lot (63%, no gender difference).

Is streaming fatigue growing?

Why we asked: Some talk shows had recently announced and then retracted plans to break the strike and start airing again. And as we headed into the field with this wave, the screenwriters reached a tentative deal to end their strike. With the actors still out, it will be a while before we see scripted shows returning to the airwaves, although there is still some pipeline. So are people noticing any lack of content yet?

What we found: Not really. The data is pretty consistent from the last time we asked this. But the one point that jumped was the statement, “There are too many streaming services.” Today 62% agree with that statement, up from 54% when we first asked in April.

The Ipsos Care-o-Meter

Why we asked: How much do you know about a series of in-the-news events, and how much do you care about them? We explore the relationship between the two in each week’s Care-o-Meter. Check out the new Care-o-Meter page for the full analysis.

People really want humans, not AI, creating news content

Why we asked: AI continues to advance and dominate headlines in the business and tech worlds. And in consumer news, too. We first asked this question back in February and thought it was time to add another data point to this important topic.

What we found: People still generally prefer human-created content over AI-generated. They are a little more forgiving of marketing websites (62% want human) and artistic photos (65%). But for journalism articles and illustrations, there was a jump from 69% (each) to 74%. Videos for personal use and movies for streaming or theatrical release also jumped about 10 points each. This tracks with other sentiment about growing concern and worry with AI topics. Including….

The growing fear of AI misinformation

Why we asked: This is another one we hadn’t trended in a bit (since March). We wondered if it would follow the pattern, too.

What we found: And yes, it did. More think misinformation will get worse (53% to 61%) as more AI tools enter the marketplace. And a sliver more think energy use will get worse. (up 4 points to 32%). But we’ve talked a lot about the tension between the worry and wonder on AI. And we see that here. Only 12% now think early detection will get worse (down from 20%). Fewer think that white- or blue-collar job opportunities (29%, down from 27%; and 30%, down from 37%, respectively) will get better. We also added another option, about your own job prospects and 42% think they will get better.

People suspect AI will be better at non-management jobs

Why we asked: We have asked questions about how people feel about their job prospects when it comes to AI tools getting better and better. But what jobs do they think AI is best suited for?

What we found: The gig-economy site Fiverr recently launched a campaign with the tag line, “AI took my job… to the next level.” We’ve seen in our data that workers are concerned that AI will just take their jobs. But what kinds of jobs would AI be good at? Only 6% think CEOs/C-suite roles will be a good fit for AI. We don’t think it would be good at middle-management either (8%). A plurality said AI would succeed in manufacturing jobs (27%), followed by “none of the above” at 26%, service jobs at (17%) and office workers (14%).

Signals

Here’s what we’re reading this week that has us thinking about the future:

• What Happens When Wall Street Buys Your Block? (via NYT)
• HeyGen debuts video translation AI service (via HeyGen) (I tried this, it’s kind of bonkers cool)
• DeepMind co-founder says Generative AI is a phase (via MIT)
• McDonald’s is getting rid of self-serve soda machines (via CNN)

For complete toplines for all waves, please see the full data and methodology.