Just 1 in 3 Canadians trust social media algorithms

“May the most divisive content win.”

A study by Léger has examined Canadians’ overall trust in a variety of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. The study found that just 1 in 3 Canadians (34%) trust the algorithms that decide what content to show users on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (now known as X), etc. Quebecers (29%) are those least likely to trust social media algorithms, while Albertans are the most likely (38%).

Canadians are most likely to place their trust in AI tools used for completing tasks at home, such as adjusting the thermostat, playing music or vacuuming (63%).

1 in 2 Canadians also trust AI tools that answer questions about a product or service on a website via chat (52%), and AI tools using facial recognition (51%).

“Recently, Chat GPT and other tools like Google Bard have been making many Canadian and American headlines. With this in mind, we took a deeper dive into Canadians’ and Americans’ perspectives on AI tools in general.

“Canadians are most concerned that AI tools lack the emotion/empathy required to make good decisions (75% agree) and/or are susceptible to fraud/hacking (72% agree). Americans are most concerned that they are susceptible to fraud/hacking(73% agree) and/or threaten human jobs (72% agree)”

Just 1 in 3 Canadians say they trust social media algorithms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (now known as X).

This article was originally published on May 30 and updated on July 24, 2023.


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