Banning Disruptive Technologies: How Does the Public Opinion Respond? An Explorative Study

The rapid diffusion of disruptive technologies is generating tangible impacts over organizations and society. Yet, this evolution is currently outpacing the development of regulatory frameworks, making the relationship between institutional policies and technological progress problematic. The purpose of this study is to investigate the public response to the ban of disruptive digital technologies. To achieve this, we perform a social network and sentiment analysis on a dataset comprising 12,744 X contributions related to the suspension of ChatGPT in Italy. Our findings reveal that such measures elicit intense and negatively polarized reactions from the public, who tend to prioritize innovation and technology accessibility over concerns raised by institutions. The observed findings are likely the result of the widespread adoption of the technology in question, the international context in which the ban was implemented, and the public's tendency to downplay the risks underscored by the intervention. Our analysis further sheds light on the process of formation and diffusion of opinions, identifying key actors within the emerging network who might have influenced the public perception on the ban.