Q3 2025 was the most negative quarter towards AI on Hacker News (zachperk.com)

A longitudinal analysis of top-10 Hacker News posts shows Q3 2025 was the most negative quarter toward AI since the post‑ChatGPT era began, with about 36.8% of AI-related top posts classified as negative. The author zoomed into the post‑ChatGPT window (roughly Q4 2022 onward), labeled notable OpenAI releases for context, and compared quarter-to-quarter sentiment: historically the negative share sat in the high‑20s to low‑30s, with modest spikes around major events (ChatGPT, GPT‑4, earlier Copilot/NeuralHash controversies). Q4 2025 is tracking close behind but remains incomplete, and the author notes projected post volume for Q4 may actually be lower than Q3. For the AI/ML community this matters because Hacker News functions as an early voice for technical sentiment: larger model launches tend to increase skepticism and critical discussion, so public-facing releases and communications can drive measurable backlash. Methodologically the analysis uses top‑10 HN posts per quarter and simple sentiment classification, revealing a stable baseline of concern that jumps with high‑visibility events. The implication: teams should anticipate and plan for heightened scrutiny around major model announcements—addressing safety, transparency, and misuse proactively can help manage community reaction and public discourse.