Japanese survey: 65% believe AI makes people happier, nearly half worry about declining thinking ability
A national public opinion survey on artificial intelligence (AI) by Japan's Asahi Shimbun shows that 65% of respondents believe AI "will make people happier," but at the same time, 47% worry that using AI may lead to "declining thinking ability."
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 28, 2026 at 19:02
- 🔍 Collected: April 28, 2026 at 19:32 (29 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 28, 2026 at 19:38 (5 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency, Reporter Dai Ya-chen, Tokyo, 28th) Japan's Asahi Shimbun announced the results of a national public opinion survey on artificial intelligence (AI), showing that most people have positive expectations for AI, with 65% of respondents believing that AI "will make people happier," but at the same time, there are concerns about its impact, with 47% of respondents believing that using AI may lead to "declining thinking ability."
The survey pointed out that 65% of respondents believe AI "will make people happier," which is higher than the 30% who believe it "will not make people happier." Among them, the 30s age group was the most optimistic, with 78% believing AI would make people happier, while only 52% of those over 70 years old felt the same, showing a significant generational difference.
Today, AI is widely applied in daily necessities such as smartphones and home appliances. Regarding whether the use of AI will affect thinking ability, the largest proportion, 47%, believe it "will decline," while 32% believe it "will not change," and only 18% believe it will "improve thinking ability." By age group, the proportion believing it "will decline" was the highest across all age groups, ranging from 40% to 50%.
Regarding the future brought by AI, overall, 48% are optimistic and 41% are pessimistic. Men (56%) are more optimistic than women (41%). More than half of those under 50 years old hold an optimistic view, with the 40s age group reaching the highest at 62%; in contrast, 51% of those over 70 years old expressed pessimism.
Further analysis showed that among those who are pessimistic about the future, 61% believe that thinking ability will decline, and 57% believe that AI does not help improve happiness.
On the other hand, regarding the degree of threat posed by "AI will one day surpass human intelligence," as high as 78% believe it "constitutes a threat," while only 20% believe it "is not a threat." Even among those who are optimistic about the future of AI, 73% still hold this concern.
From a cultural perspective, regarding whether AI creations can be considered works of art, 65% expressed "disagreement," while only 28% expressed agreement. Men's agreement rate (31%) was slightly higher than women's (24%); by age group, over 70% of those over 60 years old disagreed, while among the 30s to 40s age group, the agreement rate was close to 40%.
In addition, overall, 74% of respondents expressed "interest" in AI (highly interested, somewhat interested), among which the proportion of men (33%) showing "highly interested" in AI was significantly higher than women (17%), with men under 30 years old being close to 50%.
This survey targeted 3,000 randomly selected voters across Japan and was conducted by mail, with 1,827 valid responses received, for a response rate of 61%. (Editor: Hsieh Yi-hsuan) 1150428
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(Central News Agency, Reporter Dai Ya-chen, Tokyo, 28th) Japan's Asahi Shimbun announced the results of a national public opinion survey on artificial intelligence (AI), showing that most people have positive expectations for AI, with 65% of respondents believing that AI "will make people happier," but at the same time, there are concerns about its impact, with 47% of respondents believing that using AI may lead to "declining thinking ability."
The survey pointed out that 65% of respondents believe AI "will make people happier," which is higher than the 30% who believe it "will not make people happier." Among them, the 30s age group was the most optimistic, with 78% believing AI would make people happier, while only 52% of those over 70 years old felt the same, showing a significant generational difference.
Today, AI is widely applied in daily necessities such as smartphones and home appliances. Regarding whether the use of AI will affect thinking ability, the largest proportion, 47%, believe it "will decline," while 32% believe it "will not change," and only 18% believe it will "improve thinking ability." By age group, the proportion believing it "will decline" was the highest across all age groups, ranging from 40% to 50%.
Regarding the future brought by AI, overall, 48% are optimistic and 41% are pessimistic. Men (56%) are more optimistic than women (41%). More than half of those under 50 years old hold an optimistic view, with the 40s age group reaching the highest at 62%; in contrast, 51% of those over 70 years old expressed pessimism.
Further analysis showed that among those who are pessimistic about the future, 61% believe that thinking ability will decline, and 57% believe that AI does not help improve happiness.
On the other hand, regarding the degree of threat posed by "AI will one day surpass human intelligence," as high as 78% believe it "constitutes a threat," while only 20% believe it "is not a threat." Even among those who are optimistic about the future of AI, 73% still hold this concern.
From a cultural perspective, regarding whether AI creations can be considered works of art, 65% expressed "disagreement," while only 28% expressed agreement. Men's agreement rate (31%) was slightly higher than women's (24%); by age group, over 70% of those over 60 years old disagreed, while among the 30s to 40s age group, the agreement rate was close to 40%.
In addition, overall, 74% of respondents expressed "interest" in AI (highly interested, somewhat interested), among which the proportion of men (33%) showing "highly interested" in AI was significantly higher than women (17%), with men under 30 years old being close to 50%.
This survey targeted 3,000 randomly selected voters across Japan and was conducted by mail, with 1,827 valid responses received, for a response rate of 61%. (Editor: Hsieh Yi-hsuan) 1150428
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to grasp the latest news in real time.
The text, images, and audio-visual content of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.