Do People Know Where AI Is Used?

Artificial intelligence is driving the digital transformation of many industries. This year alone, the AI market is projected to grow by 154 percent, and while this pivotal advancement is working its way into industries, not everyone understands exactly what artificial intelligence has already touched.

According to a new study by Edelman, there is a division between how people in the general public and top tech executives understand artificial intelligence. Unsurprisingly, most tech executives had a better gauge on what technologies had AI working behind the scenes than the general public.

Most tech executives and the general population are aware that AI is behind voice assistant programs. Many people in the general public do not realize that natural language processing—systematically cataloguing human languages—uses artificial intelligence. In fact, the technology that underpins natural language processing aides the voice assistants that vast majorities of people understand uses AI.

Both tech executives and the general public seemed to have a low awareness of how AI is involved with the ride sharing industry. Only about a fifth of the wider population surveyed realized that ride sharing involved some level of artificial intelligence, while less than a third of tech executives reported recognizing AI in the industry.