Generation Z and young millennials in the Global South are embracing AI at much higher rates than their European counterparts, according to a new survey from the OECD.
The Global South is emerging as the fastest adopters of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), leaving many of their European peers trailing behind, according to a new survey.
AI promises to revolutionise healthcare and global economies but countries that that do not have the right infrastructure or fail to adapt to the technology could get left behind.
Young people aged between 18 and 35 in India, Brazil, and South Africa are leading in AI adoption, with uptake in European countries, including Germany, France and Italy lagging behind, according to a new survey conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in collaboration with the technology company Cisco.
More than 14,000 people from 14 countries answered 20 questions about how they use generative AI and the internet.
In India, for example, 66 per cent of respondents say they use generative AI regularly compared to just 19 per cent in Germany.
Which European country uses AI the most?
The Netherlands uses AI the most in Europe, with 25 per cent of respondents reporting regular AI use.
Germany uses AI the least in Europe, with 19 per cent of users reporting regular use. Despite Europeans not using it as much as their peers in Asia or Latin America, half of the Germans, French and Italians surveyed said that AI is at least somewhat useful. The Dutch are more cautious about AI, with 44 per cent of people saying that AI serves some purpose.
These numbers fall below the global average in the survey of 80 per cent among under-35s who said that AI is somewhat helpful.
“Younger individuals (18-35-year-olds) and those in emerging economies show high optimism toward generative AI, but older adults and those in Europe and Japan are more sceptical,” the survey found.
Europeans were also less likely than their peers to think AI will affect their careers. Almost a third of Dutch respondents said it will have no impact at all, compared with just over 20 per cent in Germany, France, and Italy.
“This suggests that while some are bracing for big changes, most people in surveyed European countries are either unconvinced or uncertain about AI's impact at work,” the report said.
The European respondents were also less likely to have had training to improve their AI skills than their peers in other continents, with over 70 per cent of French and German respondents saying they have not done any AI job training. Fewer people in Spain and Italy went without AI training, with 68 per cent and 64 per cent saying they hadn’t done any yet, respectively.
Yet 33 per cent of German respondents and 31 per cent of Dutch respondents said their workplaces offered information technology (ICT) training in the last year.
There are some European countries that are hoping to catch up in AI education. Almost 30 per cent of Italian respondents said they will likely take AI training in the next year, while intentions are much lower in Germany.
More than half of the French respondents said they would not partake in AI training next year.
Europeans’ willingness to take an AI course is also below the global average, the poll found. Almost 60 per cent of the recipients from India, Brazil and South Africa plan to get AI training to familiarise themselves with the new technology.
Despite the OECD report showing that younger generations and emerging economies are leading the way with AI and technology adoption, they “are also at greater risk of negative side effects,” such as screen fatigue and digital socialising, the report found.
