AI - It's Not the
Future, It's Now
From searching to shopping, our new survey reveals how AI is already changing our lives
We surveyed people across the UK to understand the impact of AI in 2025 and beyond
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer revealed plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) to boost growth across the UK and this week, everyone is talking about the launch of DeepSeek. With AI and its vast potential currently on everyone's minds, we have surveyed 2,003 people across the country asking them a series of questions about AI and how they're using it in 2025. AI allows computers to learn and solve problems almost like humans. And where once it was a buzzword on the lips of IT and marketing professionals, now more and more people are using it in their daily lives. AI helps you search online. You’ve probably interacted with an AI chatbot. People are using tools like ChatGPT to help write essays at university and put together documents at work. Some people are even using AI to respond to texts and WhatsApp messages.
For the first time in decades, we’re seeing genuine innovation in how we search for and interact with information online. Whether through AI-enhanced search engines, conversational chatbots or social media platforms, the future offers more online options and opportunities than ever before. At TalkTalk, we wanted to understand what this means for the people in the UK. Is the nation ready to use AI? If so, how is it being used and which generations are using it? We spoke to you to find out!
We surveyed people across the UK to understand the impact of AI in 2025 and beyond
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer revealed plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) to boost growth across the UK and this week, everyone is talking about the launch of DeepSeek. With AI and its vast potential currently on everyone's minds, we have surveyed 2,003 people across the country asking them a series of questions about AI and how they're using it in 2025. AI allows computers to learn and solve problems almost like humans. And where once it was a buzzword on the lips of IT and marketing professionals, now more and more people are using it in their daily lives. AI helps you search online. You’ve probably interacted with an AI chatbot. People are using tools like ChatGPT to help write essays at university and put together documents at work. Some people are even using AI to respond to texts and WhatsApp messages.
For the first time in decades, we’re seeing genuine innovation in how we search for and interact with information online. Whether through AI-enhanced search engines, conversational chatbots or social media platforms, the future offers more online options and opportunities than ever before. At TalkTalk, we wanted to understand what this means for the people in the UK. Is the nation ready to use AI? If so, how is it being used and which generations are using it? We spoke to you to find out!
How Familiar are People in the UK with AI?
It turns out, not only are people familiar with AI in the UK but many of them are already using it. From our research, we can see that 50% of respondents recognise the term AI and are familiar with it. And 18% of them are tapping into the possibilities of AI weekly, with 15% doing so daily. Significantly, we can also see that age is a factor in AI familiarity and usage. For the younger generations, it’s a technology they understand and continue to use. When asked whether they were familiar with AI, 60% of 16-44s answered yes, whereas only 32% of over 55s were familiar. The same goes for usage too. Our research highlights that the highest AI users are those aged between 25 and 34, with 24% of people using it as often as every day.
How Familiar are People in the UK with AI?
It turns out, not only are people familiar with AI in the UK but many of them are already using it. From our research, we can see that 50% of respondents recognise the term AI and are familiar with it. And 18% of them are tapping into the possibilities of AI weekly, with 15% doing so daily. Significantly, we can also see that age is a factor in AI familiarity and usage. For the younger generations, it’s a technology they understand and continue to use. When asked whether they were familiar with AI, 60% of 16-44s answered yes, whereas only 32% of over 55s were familiar. The same goes for usage too. Our research highlights that the highest AI users are those aged between 25 and 34, with 24% of people using it as often as every day.
The Use of AI in everyday life
So, we know that people are beginning to use AI in their everyday lives. But what are they using it for?
The simple act of browsing online (something we all do) is quickly being transformed by AI. Nearly half of the people in our research (49%) are using AI to help with searching online. You’ll see AI overviews on your search results to get a quick summary or answer to your query. Instead of opening many tabs to manually sift through webpages to research a topic, you can also use an AI-powered tool like ChatGPT to summarise information from multiple sources in one go. Not only are many search engines building AI into their offerings for quick summaries, but it’s also being used to read content aloud and translate it into different languages. This growing area of AI is likely to dominate how everyday people use the internet and search online for the next few years.
The Use of AI in everyday life
So, we know that people are beginning to use AI in their everyday lives. But what are they using it for?
The simple act of browsing online (something we all do) is quickly being transformed by AI. Nearly half of the people in our research (49%) are using AI to help with searching online. You’ll see AI overviews on your search results to get a quick summary or answer to your query. Instead of opening many tabs to manually sift through webpages to research a topic, you can also use an AI-powered tool like ChatGPT to summarise information from multiple sources in one go. Not only are many search engines building AI into their offerings for quick summaries, but it’s also being used to read content aloud and translate it into different languages. This growing area of AI is likely to dominate how everyday people use the internet and search online for the next few years.
Day-to-day usage
For many of the respondents in our survey, AI is seen as a way to enrich their lives and make their day-to-day tasks that little bit easier. This could be studying, listing items on resales sites, creating images or learning a new language.
Many people are even using AI to help them tackle the busiest time of the year. Christmas – with a festive helping hand to:
Finding deals (28% of respondents said this)
Gift recommendations (22% of respondents said this)
Tracking budgets (20% of respondents said this)
Planning travel (17% of respondents said this)
Writing thank you cards (15% of respondents said this)
Day-to-day usage
For many of the respondents in our survey, AI is seen as a way to enrich their lives and make their day-to-day tasks that little bit easier. This could be studying, listing items on resales sites, creating images or learning a new language.
Many people are even using AI to help them tackle the busiest time of the year. Christmas – with a festive helping hand to:
Finding deals (28% of respondents said this)
Gift recommendations (22% of respondents said this)
Tracking budgets (20% of respondents said this)
Planning travel (17% of respondents said this)
Writing thank you cards (15% of respondents said this)
Popular ways of using AI
For many of the respondents in our survey, AI is seen as a way to enrich their lives and make their day-to-day tasks that little bit easier. This could be studying, listing items on resales sites , creating images or learning a new language. Examples from our survey showed people are using AI for:
Writing work emails (26% of respondents said this).
Shopping online (29% of respondents said this)
Social media (28% of respondents said this)
Streaming music (27% of respondents said this)
Many people are even using AI to help them tackle the busiest time of the year. Christmas – with a festive helping hand to:
Finding deals (28% of respondents said this)
Gift recommendations (22% of respondents said this)
Tracking budgets (20% of respondents said this)
Planning travel (17% of respondents said this)
Writing thank you cards (15% of respondents said this)
Popular ways of using AI
For many of the respondents in our survey, AI is seen as a way to enrich their lives and make their day-to-day tasks that little bit easier. This could be studying, listing items on resales sites , creating images or learning a new language. Examples from our survey showed people are using AI for:
Writing work emails (26% of respondents said this).
Shopping online (29% of respondents said this)
Social media (28% of respondents said this)
Streaming music (27% of respondents said this)
Many people are even using AI to help them tackle the busiest time of the year. Christmas – with a festive helping hand to:
Finding deals (28% of respondents said this)
Gift recommendations (22% of respondents said this)
Tracking budgets (20% of respondents said this)
Planning travel (17% of respondents said this)
Writing thank you cards (15% of respondents said this)
