How attitudes toward AI vary around the world

You can run, but you can’t hide from the AI revolution. Everyone seems to have an opinion on the technology that’s rapidly changing how we work across the world, and unsurprisingly, attitudes toward the tech spurring these changes are mixed.

As the graphic from Visual Capitalist shows, it’s striking how public sentiment toward AI is split mainly between developed and developing countries.

Made using data from an Ipsos survey of 19,504 adults in 28 countries, the graphic shows that most respondents in places like China, India, and Peru think AI has more benefits than drawbacks.

In contrast, residents of the US, Canada, and France hold a less favorable view of the tech.

Malaysia, the only Southeast Asian country in the survey, is also largely positive toward AI, with more than 60% of respondents believing it brings more advantages than disadvantages.

It should be noted that the survey was conducted in late 2021, before generative AI tools like ChatGPT took over the public consciousness. Still, the results are instructive.

Developing economies are typically less services-oriented than their developed peers, which perhaps explains why attitudes toward AI in the former are more positive. After all, it’s much easier to envisage AI replacing a coder than it is a farmer.