Yahoo Finance AI don't think so: Brits throw shade on the value of artificial intelligence
Many Brits still struggle to see the significance of artificial intelligence or trust it to perform complex tasks, fresh research has found.
As many as one in three Brits say they fail to see the impact of AI in their daily life, according to a survey of 2,000 UK adults conducted by pollster Opinium.
More than half (56%) said they would not trust AI to control a vehicle, while around two-fifths (41%) said they would not trust the technology to diagnose a health problem.
Brits are almost twice as likely to distrust, rather than trust artificial intelligence decision-making for financial investments, the survey found, while more people distrust AI’s capacity to improve customer service via chatbots than improve it.
The research highlights the apparent rift between investor expectations of the potential opportunities for AI and the experiences of the technology by consumers, eighteen months after large-language model ChatGPT was launched by OpenAI.
Guy Windsor-Lewis, CEO of real estate firm Locale, said the research “goes beyond just looking at our fears of AI but underscores the fact that there is still a lack of understanding and trust of it especially when it comes to some of the most personal aspects of our lives where our health and safety is at stake.”
“In recognising that AI remains in its nascent stages, it becomes imperative for transitioning businesses to prioritise the foundational aspects of technology.”
However, the survey did find some areas where respondents appeared to see the utility in applying AI-powered tools. Brits are twice as likely to trust (44%) than distrust (22%) AI’s ability to facilitate natural language understanding and translation, while they were more likely to trust (36%) than distrust (26%) the power of the technology to enhance cybersecurity and protect against cyber threats.
