To me it seems like a term that users pessimistic about AI and the future apply to those with an optimistic opinion.

By speaking of boosting, they add an implication that the opinion isn't as genuine as their own and is perhaps motivated by some sort of financial benefit.

Am I wrong?

Do you believe than an industry that's investing 1 trillion per year in infrastructure, isn't also investing tens of billions in marketing, including pseudo-grassroots movements aka astro turfing? They would be total idiots not to, and they're not.