Survey finds most smartphone users aren't engaging with AI

Only 14% of users find AI features helpful, while only 12% said they use ChatGPT or Gemini

Both Apple and Google are going all in on artificial intelligence, with Apple getting ready to publicly launch its Apple Intelligence suite of AI features next week, which includes ChatGPT integration and Google unveiling Live, a mobile conversational experience that lets users have a conversations with Gemini. 

The question is, is this what smartphone users actually want? And how much will it factor into their purchasing decisions? According to a new survey out from CNET on Friday, the answer seems to be pretty muted so far. 

Sampling 2,484 adults, including 2,387 smartphone owners, the survey found that 25% of smartphone owners don't find AI features helpful, compared to 14% who do, and only 18% say AI integrations are their main motivator for upgrading their phone.  

The things that do matter to them: longer battery life, with over 60% saying that would drive them to buy a new phone, while 46% said more storage, and 38% said better camera features. 

When asked specifically their thoughts about AI, 34% expressed concerns about privacy, and 19% said they didn't know how to use the AI features on their phone. In fact, only 12% said they used AI tools like ChatGPT or Gemini, while a mere 10% said they used AI tools for photo editing, image creation, or writing text.

Given the low propensity of usage, it's not surprising that nearly half, 45%, of those surveyed said they aren't willing to pay anything extra for AI features, even though that is likely what will be asked of them going forward.

For example, as CNET points out, Samsung's website says its Galaxy AI features "will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices," but after that they will have to subscribe to Gemini Advanced, which costs $19.99 a month. And it's likely Apple will take a similar path. 

That doesn't mean there won't be a market for these features in the future, especially as a still small, but not insignificant, percentage of both Gen Zers and Millennials say they're already excited for them, with 20% from both generations saying they're excited about AI capabilities and find them helpful.

On top of that, 15% of Gen Zers and 16% of Millennials use AI on their phones for tasks like photo editing, image creation and summarizing or writing text, while 20% of Gen Zers and 19% of Millennials regularly use an AI tool like ChatGPT or Google Gemini on their smartphones. 

(Image source: analyticsvidhya.com)