Consumer Behavior

More consumers using AI tools but still lots of mistrust

Generated by AI/Adobe Stock

March 12, 2026

Summarize with

A hefty number of U.S. consumers, 71%, are using AI tools, with 37% using them daily or several times a week and 41% would use it more frequently for shopping tasks if they could compare prices across retailers in one place.

Those are findings from Numerator's "Consumer AI Adoption Trends" report that polled 5,000-plus U.S. consumers.

Nearly half, 41%, state that cross-retailer price comparison would drive greater shopping use. One in five have used AI for shopping assistance, according to a press release on the findings.

Additional findings include:

Frequent AI users are more likely to be high-income, educated Gen Z or millennials living in urban environments. Nearly half (48%) of frequent users say they use AI for professional purposes, nearly double that of infrequent users (25%), suggesting a strong link between occupation and AI engagement.
Infrequent AI users are more likely to be middle-income Gen X consumers who have a trade or 2-year degree and live in suburban areas.
Non-users are more likely to be low-income Boomers with a high school education or GED living in rural areas.
The top three AI tools or technologies that consumers report using are ChatGPT (63% of frequent users, 49% of infrequent users), Google Gemini (45%, 36%), and Microsoft Copilot (29%, 18%).
Consumer opinions about AI are a mixed bag; 45% hold a positive view, while 31% hold a negative view and 24% said they were neutral or had no opinion. Boomers+ and Gen Z are more likely to hold negative views than other generations (37% and 35%, respectively).
Consumers said their concerns about AI included the potential to be used maliciously (58%), that AI could replace human jobs or reduce job opportunities (53%), that AI could potentially spread misinformation or fake content (53%), and that they have concerns about the privacy and security of personal information (48%).
The top use cases for recent AI use included general curiosity and research (41%), writing and editing (33%), entertainment and fun (24%), learning and education (22%), and troubleshooting and technical support (22%).