US faces AI-fueled stock overvaluation and rising labor and community resistance

Economists warn that the rapid rise of artificial‑intelligence‑related optimism has pushed U.S. equities to historically risky levels. The S&P 500 is now priced at about 41 times the average earnings of the past decade, well above the 32.5 multiple that preceded the 1929 market crash, prompting fears of a severe correction.

At the same time, AI is becoming a flashpoint for social conflict in the United States. Unions such as the Writers Guild of America and SAG‑AFTRA have secured safeguards against AI‑generated scripts and the unauthorized digital replication of performers’ faces and voices. Artists demand that any use of AI tools be documented and compensated. In Virginia, residents near new data‑center projects are demanding clearer impact studies on electricity, water use, noise and land use, reflecting broader community backlash against the physical infrastructure supporting AI models.