Introduction

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Artificial intelligence’s rapid rise, exemplified by ChatGPT’s explosive adoption, captures both the promise and the peril that accompany new technologies. These moments of disruption are not new. The telegraph, broadcast media, and the internet each provoked fears before becoming embedded in daily life. This book argues that disruption is not technological failure but reflects the social and political turbulence created when systems cannot absorb innovation. To explain this cycle, it introduces a five-stage framework—emergence, early warnings, crisis, agenda-setting, and response formation—that highlights how technologies evolve and societies adapt. Through cases ranging from nuclear weapons to AI, cryptocurrency, and social media, the book shows how disruption forces trade-offs between risk and progress, clarifies stakes through crisis, and sets the stage for imperfect but necessary governance.</jats:p>