New Jersey is using AI like crazy—but nobody trusts it

Why your boss (and maybe your kid) is relying on AI more than you think

If you’ve noticed more people in New Jersey talking to chatbots at work, asking AI to fix their resumes or getting homework “help” from tools their professors would rather ban, you’re not imagining things. A new Rutgers-led report shows just how deeply artificial intelligence has already seeped into daily life across the Garden State—and how uneasy many residents feel about it.

AI becomes a Jersey routine

According to the study, a striking 74% of New Jersey adults have tried at least one AI tool, outpacing the national average. And the younger you are, the more likely AI is stitched into your day: a whopping 92% of residents ages 18 to 24 have used AI, compared with just 54% of those 65 and older. Awareness of marquee tools is high too—81% of New Jerseyans have heard of ChatGPT, and more than half have used it at least once.

Jobs are shifting as well. Katherine Ognyanova, a Rutgers communication scholar and coauthor of the study, says more than a quarter of employed New Jersey adults now must use AI at work. Among workers with graduate degrees, that jumps to 44%. Whether it’s automating emails or analyzing data, AI is no longer optional for many professionals.

Schoolwork and the AI gray zone

AI isn’t just reshaping offices—it's also rewriting student life. Forty-five percent of New Jersey college students use AI frequently for coursework. But there’s a tension brewing: instructors in New Jersey are more likely than their peers nationwide to discourage AI use. It may not be working. Nearly two-thirds of students admit they’ve used AI in ways that qualify as cheating, revealing a growing disconnect between classroom rules and digital reality.

Enthusiastic use, uneasy trust

Despite the booming use of AI, New Jerseyans pump the brakes when it comes to high-stakes automation. Only 7–9% say AI should make final decisions on matters like medical priority, parole, hiring or college admissions. And a majority—59%—want strict government regulation. Transparency matters too: 85% say companies should tell users when they are dealing with AI rather than a human, and 79% want unauthorized AI-generated images of real people to be illegal.

In a state that’s quick to adopt new tech but even quicker to voice concerns, New Jersey’s relationship with AI may be best summed up as this: use it, sure—but don’t you dare let it run the show.

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