UK & Ireland consumers embrace AI assistants, trust grows with use

A recent study commissioned by IBM has found that nearly three-quarters of UK and Ireland consumers are comfortable with AI-powered assistants playing a role in their decision-making.

The survey, which included 2,257 adults aware of AI interactions, sheds light on public attitudes towards the use of AI in everyday life, highlighting both opportunities and concerns for businesses aiming to deploy agentic AI solutions.

Acceptance of AI

The research reports that 74% of participants are at ease with AI tools assisting them, including in making financial or household decisions. A widening acceptance is also apparent in the types of decisions people are willing to allow AI to influence. For example, 48% are comfortable with AI enrolling them in paid services, 57% are at ease with AI making everyday choices, and 62% are open to receiving personalised suggestions.

The study indicates that the use of AI has become more integrated into weekly routines. Retail usage leads at 55%, followed by entertainment at 48%, finance at 43%, customer service at 42%, and government services at 32%.

Drivers behind AI usage

Survey respondents cited convenience and speed (40%), robust data security and privacy (37%), and 24/7 support (35%) as the dominant features encouraging their use of AI tools. The demand for secure and reliable systems is further emphasised by the 63% who value retaining transparency and control in decisions made by AI and the 44% who are concerned about sharing their data.

Trust and enjoyment

A large proportion of respondents say they trust interactive AI, with 79% expressing confidence that chatbots and similar systems deliver reliable results, and 72% reporting enjoyment in using them. These attitudes suggest that public trust in AI is growing, paving the way for the introduction of increasingly complex AI systems able to support multi-step processes in customer journeys.

"Our study shows that users are quickly climbing the curve of customer comfort when it comes to AI assistants. AI is increasingly influencing the way we live, work, shop and innovate and this is a prime moment for UKI enterprise to scale agentic AI to deliver customer-led growth. To seize this opportunity, organisations must prioritise transparency and explainability in AI services, deploy production-ready agents and invest in building the AI and digital skills of the UKI workforce - ensuring we're equipped to capture the growing business opportunities."

These comments from Leon Butler, Chief Executive for IBM UK and Ireland, reflect a consensus emerging from the findings that the business community should focus on transparency, explainability, and digital skills if it is to successfully meet evolving consumer expectations.

Sector perspectives

"It's striking that a large proportion of the UKI public are broadly comfortable with the idea of AI systems taking even consequential actions on their behalf. However public confidence in AI is currently ahead of business' ability to deliver AI systems and services that are secure and reliable at scale. To reap the benefits of delivering AI-powered products and services to customers, business must carefully implement systems that will perform safely and not break customers' trust."

Neil Ward-Dutton, Vice President for AI, Automation, Data & Analytics Europe at IDC, provided this perspective on the gap between public comfort and business readiness in AI deployments.

The survey also explored consumer preferences for improvements to customer experience through AI, with fraud prevention named by 40% as a priority, followed by improved communication (33%) and smarter virtual assistants (30%).

Generational and regional views

Millennials are at the forefront of adoption, with 65% stating AI will benefit society, and around 70% expressing trust in AI within retail environments. A significant generational gap persists, though, as 63% of 18-24-year-olds trust AI's reliability compared to 32% for people over 55.

Geographically, the North of England and the Midlands show high levels of use, with 85% of respondents in the North and 84% in the Midlands using virtual assistants. Londoners demonstrate higher trust in information provided by AI tools, with 63% expressing confidence-21% above the UK and Ireland average. In the West Midlands, 65% trust AI-powered retail services, more than 10% above the national average, while half of Manchester residents surveyed trust AI for daily tasks.

The results point to mature attitudes towards AI in daily life and a potential for businesses across sectors-including retail, financial services, and the public sector-to realise productivity and customer experience gains through trusted and well-explained AI-powered services.