What do people really think about AI?

Artificial intelligence is no longer something confined to science fiction. From helping us draft emails to supporting healthcare diagnostics, AI tools are increasingly becoming part of everyday life. But as these technologies move faster into public services and workplaces, an important question remains: are people being brought along for the journey?

In the latest episode of Connecting Society, co-host Mark Green spoke to Eleanor O’Keeffe and Roshni Modhvadia from the Ada Lovelace Institute about how the public understands, experiences and responds to AI.

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Public opinions depend on the situation

The conversation explores how public attitudes towards AI are complex and changing. As Eleanor and Roshni explain, even defining “AI” is difficult — the term covers a huge range of technologies used in very different contexts. Asking people how they feel about AI in general can therefore miss the nuance of how these systems affect everyday lives in different ways.

Instead, the Ada Lovelace Institute’s research looks at specific use cases, from facial recognition and welfare systems to healthcare diagnostics and large language models such as ChatGPT. Public attitudes often shift depending on the context, the perceived benefits, and whether people feel there is meaningful human oversight.

AI can be a tool for empowerment – but it comes with risks

The episode also highlights how experiences of AI can vary across communities. For some participants in the  research, tools such as ChatGPT had become transformative — helping people with dyslexia or ADHD navigate work more easily, supporting those for whom English is not a first language, or enabling people to advocate for themselves in situations where they previously felt powerless.

At the same time, concerns around accountability, trust and fairness remain central. What happens when decisions are made using algorithms? Who is responsible if something goes wrong? And how can public trust be maintained when AI systems are used in public services?

Meaningful engagement is key to making data and AI work for everyone

As Mark reflects, building trustworthy systems means involving people from the start — not only members of the public, but also frontline workers and practitioners who will ultimately use these technologies in practice.

Throughout the discussion, one message stands out clearly: public attitudes are not fixed. They are shaped by lived experience, social context and the ways technologies are introduced into people’s lives. Meaningful engagement therefore means creating space for dialogue, involving different communities, and understanding what people need from these systems in the first place.

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