Although shoppers are skeptical about some aspects of AI, they are also open to using AI tools such as chatbots.
Credit: Roger Dooley
Today’s shoppers are encountering a lot of artificial intelligence (AI) as they research and shop for products, and AI adoption will continue to increase even further than current levels.
Attest, a consumer research platform, conducted a study earlier this year to explore the impact of AI technology on consumers. The study surveyed 9,500 working-age consumers across eight countries: the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. This study sought to assess consumers’ openness to AI and find out what excites them and what worries them about it.
Here are five key takeaways from this study:
Consumers are skeptical about AI improving customer experience
Skepticism about the benefits of AI is surprisingly deep-rooted. Only 27.3% of respondents believe that AI can improve the shopping experience, and only 26% believe that AI will lead to a more personalized experience. This skepticism stems from the recognition that AI in retail is still in its infancy. Right now, people don’t realize that it can bring tangible benefits to customers. Shoppers may still prefer human interaction and personalized service, something that current AI cannot deliver.
Consumers are open to using AI chatbots
Although skepticism about AI is high, 52% of survey respondents said they would likely use a chatbot to retrieve information from a company website. Millennial consumers (25-34 years old) were the most receptive at 60.2%. This suggests that consumers see value in AI-powered chatbots for quick information gathering and customer support inquiries.
One such chatbot is Rufus, Amazon’s shopping assistant. Rufus uses information from the internet, product listings, customer reviews, and community Q&A to answer questions and help shoppers compare products.
Consumers are using AI for pre-purchase research
41% of respondents said they would likely use AI tools like ChatGPT to research their purchases, and that number rose to 50.1% for Gen Z consumers. Consumers are also more likely to trust the information provided by these AI tools. 39.9% said they trust information from AI tools, while 28.8% said they do not.
This shows a change in consumer behavior. AI tools are becoming an important part of pre-purchase research, perhaps because they can provide a more personalized and targeted approach to product discovery than traditional search engines. AI-powered search engines like Perplexity offer new shopping tools to compete with long-time search leader Google.
Consumers are concerned about job losses due to AI
More than 59% of consumers are concerned that increased use of AI will lead to job losses. This fear is not unfounded. According to the International Monetary Fund, 40% of jobs around the world will be affected by AI. It’s unclear whether they’re worried about retail job losses, about losing their own jobs, or about the overall impact of AI on employment. Consumers are also concerned about the loss of the ‘human touch’ in customer service interactions.
Consumers: Label AI-generated content
Most of today’s chatbots are so malicious that they can’t be mistaken for humans. But that is changing rapidly. Shoppers are concerned about AI interactions that are not easily distinguishable from human interactions. 83% of respondents believe that all content generated by AI should be legally required to be clearly labeled. 74.8% said creating deepfakes should be illegal.
This call for transparency and regulation reflects high consumer concern about the potential for AI to create misleading or deceptive content. It is rapidly becoming difficult to distinguish between real content and AI-generated content, especially in images and videos. Another concern could be AI mistakes or hallucinations. People are learning to be skeptical of answers to questions created by AI, no matter how plausible.
Consumers have ambivalent attitudes about AI
This research shows that consumers are of two minds when it comes to AI. They see potential benefits, especially in areas like search and customer support. But shoppers are also wary of AI’s impact on privacy, job security, and trust.
Brands need to address these concerns head-on when implementing AI. Transparency, ethical data practices, and a human-centered approach to AI implementation must be prioritized. Companies that do so will outperform others by building customer trust and making AI part of the shopping experience.
