New consumer research reveals a widening gap between AI adoption and AI confidence. Usage is at an all time high. Excitement is falling. For any business relying on AI search to drive discovery, the implications are significant.

73% of consumers now use generative AI regularly, up from 45% in early 2024. In the same period, overall excitement about the technology has dropped by 7%.

The adoption curve has a trust problem underneath it

A study by global consultancy Prophet, drawing on responses from more than 2,000 consumers across the UK, US, Germany, China and Singapore, confirms what many have suspected: the early novelty phase of AI is over. People are no longer experimenting with these tools occasionally. They are using them as part of daily routines, for decisions that carry real personal consequences.

The same research, however, surfaces a more uncomfortable finding. Some 71% of consumers said they worry that inaccurate AI outputs could influence real-world decisions. A further 63% expressed concern that heavy reliance on AI could erode human skills over time. And 61% said they fear losing genuine human connection as AI becomes more embedded in everyday life.

This is not a niche or fringe position. These are majority concerns, held by the same people whose usage rates are climbing sharply. The picture that emerges is of consumers who have decided the tools are useful enough to use regularly, but who have not resolved their anxiety about doing so.

What consumers are actually doing with AI search

The research gives a more textured view of usage than simple adoption figures usually provide. More than a quarter of respondents said they use AI to model future versions of themselves, running through how different purchasing decisions might play out over time. Thirteen per cent said they share personal medical information with AI systems in exchange for tailored health guidance.

These are not trivial use cases. They indicate that a meaningful portion of the population has moved well past using AI as a search or summarisation shortcut. They are giving it sensitive information and acting on what it tells them.

For businesses, the relevant signal here is behavioural: AI is increasingly the first point of contact in the discovery and decision-making process, not a secondary layer people consult after visiting your website. If your business is not accurately and prominently represented in AI-generated answers, you are missing conversations that are already happening.

60% of consumers want AI to monitor brands and make purchases automatically when discounts appear. 54% want AI to proactively manage their products and services. The decision journey is shifting. It may not stop at your website at all.

Agentic AI is not a future concept. Consumers already want it.

One of the more striking findings in the Prophet research is the appetite for what the industry calls agentic AI: systems that act on behalf of users with minimal instruction, rather than simply responding to prompts.

Two thirds of respondents said they want AI systems that can interpret intent and context without requiring carefully constructed queries. Specific desired capabilities included AI that coordinates across multiple services (adjusting a restaurant booking after a flight delay, for example), negotiates pricing on behalf of users, and handles routine purchasing decisions autonomously.

The practical consequence for businesses is significant. In an agentic model, the AI system becomes the customer, acting on behalf of a human who has set broad preferences rather than making individual decisions. Brand visibility inside AI systems is not just about whether a consumer finds you when they search. It is about whether an AI agent, operating autonomously on a consumer’s behalf, includes you in the options it surfaces or acts on.

The trust gap is a visibility problem for your brand

The concern about AI accuracy flagged in the research, that inaccurate outputs could influence real decisions, has a direct read-across for any business operating in AI search. If a consumer asks an AI platform about your services and receives an incomplete, outdated or simply wrong answer, there is no correction mechanism. They do not know what they have missed. They move on.

This is why the quality and accuracy of how your business is represented across AI platforms is not a marketing nicety. It is a commercial exposure. The 71% of consumers worried about AI accuracy are right to be concerned, and the businesses that give AI systems accurate, well-structured, authoritative information about themselves are the ones that benefit when those systems are trusted enough to act on.

Consumer trust in AI is not fixed. It will be shaped, positively or negatively, by the quality of the experiences people have as usage deepens. Businesses that show up accurately and helpfully in AI-generated answers contribute to that trust. Businesses that are misrepresented or absent erode it, for themselves and, in aggregate, for the category.

What this means if you run an SME

The Prophet research was conducted across large consumer markets with a global respondent base. The dynamics it describes, rising usage, growing expectations of autonomous AI behaviour, persistent anxiety about accuracy and human connection, are not abstract trends. They are the context in which your prospective customers are now making decisions.

For an SME with limited marketing resource, the implication is straightforward. You cannot control whether consumers use AI to make decisions in your category. That is already happening. You can control whether your business is accurately represented when they do.

AI search optimisation is not about gaming a platform or chasing an algorithm. It is about ensuring that the information AI systems hold about your business is accurate, authoritative and structured in a way those systems can use. In a market where consumer trust in AI is fragile and the stakes of inaccuracy are rising, getting that right is one of the more concrete things a business can do.

The consumers are already there. The question is whether your business is.

Find out how your business appears in AI search today.

AI Search Ltd runs a free AI visibility check for UK SMEs: a clear read of how your business appears across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Bing Copilot, with a prioritised set of next steps. No jargon, no commitment required.

Get your free AI visibility check at searchai.co.uk

Source: Prophet global consumer AI survey, 2025. 2,000+ respondents across UK, US, Germany, China and Singapore.