The Heartland Institute’s Donald Kendal says Elon Musk’s viral vision of an AI-powered future is a needed counterweight to Hollywood dystopias and a new poll showing two-thirds of Americans fear AI could destroy humanity
SCHAUMBURG, IL (October 1, 2026) — The Heartland Institute’s Emerging Issues Center Director, Donald Kendal, is available for interviews about his new commentary in RedState, arguing that America has grown so fixated on AI’s risks that it has lost sight of its enormous potential to improve everyday life.
Kendal’s piece was prompted by a viral video Elon Musk shared on X depicting robots working alongside humans and humanity expanding into space, with Musk declaring, “this is the future we shall bring into being.” Kendal notes that pop culture rarely offers such optimistic visions of technology, and that fear is now the dominant public mood. A new Politico poll found nearly two in three Americans believe advanced AI poses at least a moderate risk of destroying humanity, and 48 percent support a pause in AI development.
Despite acknowledging real risks to privacy, autonomy, and liberty, Kendal is available to make the case for AI’s upside:
- Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s argument that automated manufacturing is “perfect for America”
- AI’s potential to detect cancer before symptoms appear and personalize medical treatment
- The prospect of every student getting access to an endlessly patient AI tutor
Kendal wrote:
“Call me a techno-optimist, but I refuse to believe humanity is inherently doomed to a fate depicted in The Terminator or Black Mirror. There is another vision of the future.”
On your program, Kendal can discuss:
• Why he says Elon Musk’s viral AI video captures a vision of the future America has stopped imagining
• A new Politico poll finding two-thirds of Americans believe AI poses at least a moderate risk of destroying humanity, and why he thinks pure pessimism is a mistake
• How AI-powered automation and robotics could revive American manufacturing, per comments from Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick
• AI’s potential to transform medicine through earlier cancer detection, personalized treatment, and faster drug discovery
• Why Kendal says “vigilance and optimism can coexist” — and what guardrails he believes are still necessary to protect privacy and individual liberty
Why Book Donald Kendal?
Donald Kendal is director of the Glenn C. Haskins Emerging Issues Center at The Heartland Institute, where he writes on the technology, energy, and policy trends being driven by the AI boom. He has written extensively on both AI’s risks and its potential and can speak to any audience about where the technology is headed.
To book Kendal on your program, reply to this email or contact VP & Director of Communications Jim Lakely at [email protected] or call/text 312-731-9364.
The Heartland Institute is a national nonprofit organization founded in 1984 and headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our website or call 312/377-4000.
Donald Kendal is Director of The Heartland Institute’s Socialism Research Center. Kendal is also the host of Heartland’s In the Tank Podcast.
