Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the fastest growing and most disruptive technologies in the world today. Because it has the potential to drastically impact society, it’s important to measure how people are feeling towards it.
In the following infographic, Visual Capitalist’s Marcus Lu visualizes survey data from market research firm, Ipsos, to see how attitudes towards AI varies by country. By including each country’s GDP per capita, we can see that wealthier populations are more skeptical about products and services that use the technology.
Data and Methodology
This data is based on a 28-country survey of 19,504 adults aged 18 to 74. Polling took place between November and December 2021, and the results were published in January 2022.
This survey took place before the recent explosion in popularity of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, DALL-E, and Midjourney, but forms the foundation for how people view this rapidly improving technology.
The table below lists the percentage of respondents who agreed with the following statement:
“Products and services using artificial intelligence have more benefits than drawbacks”
| Country | % Agreeing With Statement | GDP per capita |
|---|---|---|
| China | 78% | $12,556 |
| Saudi Arabia | 76% | $23,186 |
| India | 71% | $2,257 |
| Peru | 70% | $6,622 |
| Malaysia | 65% | $11,109 |
| Mexico | 65% | $10,046 |
| Colombia | 64% | $6,104 |
| Chile | 63% | $16,265 |
| South Korea | 62% | $34,998 |
| Türkiye | 60% | $9,661 |
| Brazil | 57% | $7,507 |
| South Africa | 57% | $7,055 |
| Argentina | 55% | $10,636 |
| Russia | 53% | $12,195 |
| Spain | 53% | $30,104 |
| Italy | 50% | $35,658 |
| Hungary | 49% | $18,728 |
| Poland | 48% | $18,000 |
| Japan | 42% | $39,313 |
| Sweden | 40% | $61,029 |
| Belgium | 38% | $51,247 |
| UK | 38% | $46,510 |
| Australia | 37% | $60,443 |
| Germany | 37% | $51,203 |
| United States | 35% | $70,249 |
| Netherlands | 33% | $57,768 |
| Canada | 32% | $51,988 |
| France | 31% | $43,659 |
GDP per capita as of 2021. Source: World Bank
Ipsos notes that their samples from developing economies like China and India were “more urban, more educated, and more affluent than the general population”. Thus, the results for these countries likely reflect the more tech-savvy segments of their population.
Further Survey Results
Respondents were asked additional questions about AI, which we’ve included in the tables below. Let’s start with this statement:
“Products and services using artificial intelligence make my life easier”
| Country | % Agreeing With Statement | GDP per capita |
|---|---|---|
| China | 87% | $12,556 |
| Saudi Arabia | 80% | $23,186 |
| Peru | 74% | $6,622 |
| South Korea | 74% | $34,998 |
| Mexico | 73% | $10,046 |
| India | 72% | $2,257 |
| Colombia | 71% | $6,104 |
| Malaysia | 71% | $11,109 |
| Türkiye | 71% | $9,661 |
| Chile | 70% | $16,265 |
| South Africa | 67% | $7,055 |
| Brazil | 65% | $7,507 |
| Russia | 64% | $12,195 |
| Argentina | 59% | $10,636 |
| Spain | 59% | $30,104 |
| Poland | 58% | $18,000 |
| Italy | 54% | $35,658 |
| Japan | 52% | $39,313 |
| Hungary | 50% | $18,728 |
| Belgium | 49% | $51,247 |
| Netherlands | 47% | $57,768 |
| Australia | 46% | $60,443 |
| Sweden | 46% | $61,029 |
| Germany | 45% | $51,203 |
| UK | 45% | $46,510 |
| Canada | 44% | $51,988 |
| United States | 41% | $70,249 |
| France | 39% | $43,659 |
As expected, we see a similar trend as in the previous question’s results. It seems that developing countries are embracing AI to greater lengths.
Next, we’ll look at a more forward-looking statement:
“Products and services using AI will profoundly change my daily life in the next 3-5 years”.
| Country | % Agreeing With Statement | GDP per capita |
|---|---|---|
| China | 80% | $12,556 |
| Saudi Arabia | 80% | $23,186 |
| South Korea | 76% | $34,998 |
| India | 74% | $2,257 |
| Türkiye | 73% | $9,661 |
| South Africa | 72% | $7,055 |
| Malaysia | 71% | $11,109 |
| Peru | 71% | $6,622 |
| Chile | 67% | $16,265 |
| Colombia | 65% | $6,104 |
| Mexico | 65% | $10,046 |
| Brazil | 61% | $7,507 |
| Argentina | 60% | $10,636 |
| Russia | 60% | $12,195 |
| Poland | 56% | $18,000 |
| Spain | 56% | $30,104 |
| Hungary | 55% | $18,728 |
| Italy | 53% | $35,658 |
| Japan | 53% | $39,313 |
| Netherlands | 53% | $57,768 |
| Belgium | 52% | $51,247 |
| Australia | 50% | $60,443 |
| Sweden | 50% | $61,029 |
| UK | 46% | $46,510 |
| United States | 46% | $70,249 |
| France | 45% | $43,659 |
| Canada | 44% | $51,988 |
| Germany | 44% | $51,203 |
Once again, populations from wealthier countries are at the lower end of the results. This could be due to societal factors (differing attitudes towards technology), economic structure, or some combination of both.
To elaborate on economic structure, let’s look at the world’s two biggest economies, the U.S. and China. The following table shows the distribution of each country’s workforce across the three major sectors.
| Economic Sector | U.S. | China |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture | 1% | 25% |
| Industry | 20% | 28% |
| Services | 79% | 47% |
As of 2019. Source: Statista
Developing economies such as China have a larger proportion of agricultural and industrial employment, while advanced economies like the U.S. are typically more services oriented. Structural differences such as these could have an impact on how a population views AI.
