Eh, we're not helpless. Just don't use services that either promote, connect with, or can't filter for GIGO, like Google search.
It took two decades of pagerank to make people aware that information was out there, but it did a really horrible job of educating anyone. Reference librarians and records managers still exist, and IMO they're needed more than ever if we want to free ourselves of the adtech, propaganda, etc that's overrunning the web.
I think we could actually do things to stop it if it was really required, it would come at some costs to our freedom of course, regulation would be heavy, access to certain types of computer hardware would be restricted like guns, but I'm starting to think this will actually happen.
Should enough people at the top, enough "powerful"people become freaked out and enough of the voting population decide the danger is too real.
If America goes that way, basically all other countries will follow too. I don't buy this, "If we stop, China will keep going thing". I'm sure China has it's own concerns, and they're not 100% self-destructive.
1984, but real.
So I'd argue, you might actually be wrong. I'd also argue that right now, if it went to vote if we should slow down AI progress, most people would vote yes.