Most New Jersey residents are using artificial intelligence (AI) tools in various aspects of their lives, but concerns remain about the technology’s impact on jobs and important decision-making by institutions such as law enforcement and hospitals. This is according to a new report led by Rutgers University-New Brunswick researchers.
The study looked at how AI is being used throughout the state and gathered opinions on potential regulations. “We are witnessing a shift in workplace expectations, especially in higher-skilled fields,” said Katherine Ognyanova, associate professor in the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers and coauthor of the study. “More than a quarter of employed New Jersey adults say their jobs now require the use of AI tools. That trend is even more pronounced among graduate-degree holders, where 44% report that AI use is required in their work.”
The survey was conducted between July 30 and August 18 by the National AI Opinion Monitor, which tracks public views on AI. It included responses from 5,139 adults across the United States and 1,728 New Jersey residents aged 18 or older.
In New Jersey, 74% of residents have used at least one AI tool since they became widely available, compared to 68% nationwide. Awareness levels are also high: 81% of New Jerseyans have heard of ChatGPT versus 75% nationally, with 57% saying they have used it at least once compared to 49% across the U.S.
The data shows that younger people, those with higher education levels, and those with higher incomes are more likely to use AI tools. For example, among adults aged 18 to 24 in New Jersey, usage rates reach 92%, while only about half (54%) of those aged 65 or older have tried any AI tool. Men reported higher usage (82%) than women (67%).
While many believe that AI will result in job losses—57% think it will eliminate more jobs than it creates—it has become common for employees to use these tools regularly; over two out of five employed adults in New Jersey said they use AI for work at least weekly. Among workers with graduate degrees, nearly half (44%) say using AI is required for their jobs.
University students in New Jersey show similar rates of frequent schoolwork-related AI use as students elsewhere (45%). However, instructors within the state appear more likely to discourage its use: “AI has become a routine part of schoolwork for many students in New Jersey, with almost half reporting frequent use,” Ognyanova said. “Yet instructors in the state are more likely to discourage AI use compared to educators nationally. There is clearly a mismatch between classroom guidelines and student behavior. Perhaps as a result, nearly two-thirds of students admit to using AI in ways that could be considered cheating.”
Despite this broad adoption rate across demographics and settings such as schools and workplaces, there is significant support for regulating how these technologies operate—especially regarding transparency policies around whether content comes from humans or machines. Eighty-five percent want companies to disclose when users interact with an automated system rather than another person; seventy-nine percent believe generating images using real people’s likenesses without permission should be illegal.
“While residents of New Jersey are embracing AI tools at high rates, there is a strong support for AI regulation and guardrails,” Ognyanova said. “Transparency is particularly important: over four in five respondents support labeling AI-generated content and believe companies should disclose when users are interacting with an AI system rather than a human.”
The report was coauthored by Eunbin Ha—a doctoral degree student at Rutgers—alongside Vivek Singh (associate professor at Rutgers) and Ata Uslu (doctoral researcher at Northeastern University).
