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Entrepreneur surveyed 500 small business owners across the country to ask how they're feeling about their business and current events.
Most reported a deep interest in the presidential election: Most (81%) say they are following the news closely, and 45% report daily monitoring. But only 40% actually believe and expect that the next president's policies could improve their business.
In fact, 39% of small business owners don't have faith that any helpful policies will be passed next year — and 15% of both Democrats and Republicans believe that government policy cannot materially improve their business at all. (Independents were even more pessimistic, at 29% saying the government can't help them.)
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That pessimism may be driven by the economy as a whole: The majority of respondents (70%) say they are concerned that the U.S. will enter a recession in the next two years. In fact, stressed-out entrepreneurs are losing an average of seven hours of sleep a week worrying about the state of their business.
So, where are small business owners feeling optimistic? Interestingly, the answer is in something that politicians are currently discussing regulations for: artificial intelligence.
The majority (74%) of small owners report feeling optimistic about artificial intelligence, with 28% saying AI is helping their business become more efficient, 27% saying AI will create new business opportunities and 19% saying AI is saving them money.
The optimism for AI falls along generational lines: 84% of millennial business owners see AI as helping their business in some way, while only 46% of baby boomer owners say the same.
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As AI has gained prominence, other internet fixtures have begun to shift: Google has been adjusting its algorithms to favor forums like Reddit and Quora, X (formerly Twitter) has prioritized viral videos and more. Although that's causing some impact for small business owners, 60% say these shifts have not meaningfully impacted their businesses.
Entrepreneur's survey of 500 small business owners was conducted in partnership with Talker Research in August. For the full results of our survey, click here.
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