Nigeria Is the One Country Where People Expect AI to Create More Jobs Than It Destroys

A global survey published by the Pew Research Center on 17th September found that people in 34 of 37 countries expect artificial intelligence to eliminate more jobs than it creates over the next 20 years. Nigeria was the exception. Asked whether AI would mean more jobs or fewer, 27 percent of Nigerian adults said more, against 26 percent who said fewer, a one-point gap that made Nigeria the only country in the survey where optimism about jobs outweighed pessimism.

What Pew Actually Asked

Pew Research Center's own report surveyed 42,151 adults across 36 countries between 8th February and 13th May 2026, plus a separate United States sample of 8,607 adults, for a combined 37-country comparison. Respondents were asked to think about the next 20 years and say whether AI would result in more jobs, fewer jobs, little difference, or whether they were unsure. Across the full 37-country median, 46 percent said fewer jobs, 13 percent said little difference, 9 percent said more jobs, and 25 percent were unsure, according to the Pew report.

Where the Pessimism Runs Deepest

Job-loss fears were highest in wealthy, highly automated economies. Search Engine Journal reports that expecting fewer jobs is more common in high-income countries than in middle-income ones, and the same pattern holds for general awareness of AI. Australia and South Korea recorded the highest job-loss expectations in the survey, at 76 percent each, according to a summary by AllBlogThings. In the United States, 71 percent of respondents expected AI to reduce jobs, up from 64 percent in August 2024, a seven-point rise, Gizmodo reports.

AI job-loss expectations by country. Source: Pew Research Center

Why Nigeria Stands Apart

Nigeria's 27-to-26 split was the only positive balance recorded anywhere in the survey, The News Chronicle notes in its coverage of the finding. Thailand and the Philippines came closest to matching that optimism, though in both countries "not sure" responses outnumbered "fewer jobs" rather than "more jobs" doing so outright, Gizmodo's report shows. AllBlogThings' coverage groups Nigeria with the Philippines as the survey's two most optimistic countries overall.

Pew's report also found that Nigeria posted the largest rise in AI awareness of any country tracked over time, a 14 percentage-point increase in the share of adults who say they have heard a lot about AI, compared with results from the same 25 countries Pew surveyed the previous year, The News Chronicle's coverage of the underlying report shows.

A Pattern That Shows Up in Other Countries Too

Pew's survey also found that younger adults were, in several countries, more worried about AI and jobs than older ones, according to AllBlogThings' analysis, which reports that adults aged 18 to 34 were more likely than those 50 and older to expect fewer jobs in Canada, France, Singapore, Sweden, India, Indonesia and Malaysia. AllBlogThings also points to a separate Stanford Digital Economy Lab study using payroll data through June 2026, which found employment among 22-to-25-year-olds in highly AI-exposed occupations running about 19 percent below where it would be expected if those workers had kept pace with peers in less-exposed roles, a gap the researchers attribute mainly to reduced hiring rather than layoffs.

What This Means, and What It Doesn't

Pew's own framing is cautious. The Center notes that opinion on AI "may still be taking shape" in many places, and that the survey asked about a 20-year horizon rather than near-term forecasts, which invites more speculation than a shorter timeframe would. Nigeria's result reflects a snapshot of public sentiment gathered between February and May 2026, not a labour-market forecast, and Pew's report does not explain why Nigerian respondents lean more optimistic than any other country surveyed.

Technology leaders have offered their own, mixed reads on AI's employment effects generally. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates warned on 26th August that AI could affect law, customer service, medicine, software and manufacturing within ten years, The News Chronicle's report notes, while Nansen chief executive Alex Svanevik said on 19th September that some work, such as nursing, stays hard to automate because it requires being physically present with another person.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Country Expects AI to Create More Jobs Than It Cuts?

Nigeria, according to Pew Research Center's September 2026 survey. Twenty-seven percent of Nigerian adults expect AI to create jobs, against 26 percent who expect fewer jobs, the only positive balance recorded among the 37 countries surveyed.

How Many Countries Did Pew Survey on AI and Jobs?

Pew surveyed 42,151 adults across 36 countries between 8th February and 13th May 2026, plus a separate United States sample of 8,607 adults, for a combined 37-country comparison.

Which Countries Are Most Worried About AI and Job Losses?

Australia and South Korea recorded the highest job-loss expectations, at 76 percent each. The United States followed at 71 percent.

Did AI Awareness in Nigeria Change Over the Past Year?

Yes. Nigeria recorded the largest increase in AI awareness among the countries Pew tracked over time, a 14 percentage-point rise in the share of adults who say they have heard a lot about AI.

What Time Frame Did the Pew Survey Ask About?

Respondents were asked about AI's effect on jobs in their country over the next 20 years, not immediate or short-term effects.