Latest KPMG study reveals dip in AI trust amid rising adoption
Kuwait: In a bid to better understand the general sentiment towards artificial intelligence (AI), KPMG, in collaboration with Melbourne Business School, conducted a comprehensive public study, Trust, attitudes and use of Artificial Intelligence: A global study 2025. The research captures the views of ~48,000 people from 47 countries and explores the evolving landscape of AI and its impact on society, work, education and economies.
With businesses looking to adopt newer and more efficient ways to up their productivity and growth, AI technologies are advancing fast; however, AI literacy and responsible governance are unable to keep the same pace. As a result, there is a clear divide in terms of AI's obvious benefits and perceived risks.
The report found that fewer than 40% have received AI training or education and 54% are exercising cautious optimism and concern when it comes to trusting AI.
Majid Makki, Partner and Head of IT Advisory, KPMG Kuwait, addressed the slowness in AI adoption and said:
'The transformative effects of AI are far-reaching. Tapping into that will require sustained public trust, supported by collective and well-orchestrated efforts from businesses, educators, regulators and the people themselves. Once appropriate regulations are in place, together with strong organizational practices, they will pave the path to mitigate the gap between trust and AI literacy to enable ethical deployment of AI.'
The report emphasized the shortcomings in the present regulatory landscape with respect to AI as nearly 87% of the respondents called for stronger laws and more rigorous fact-checking to combat AI-generated misinformation. Additionally, it highlighted there already exists clear public support for stronger AI regulation, with both people and organizations hoping for a well-coordinated, multi-faceted approach on national and international levels, coupled with active backing from key industry players.
Although AI-driven performance boosts are undeniable, the KPMG research further underlined that 47% of the participants have used AI at work in a complacent or inadequate way, with another 61% avoiding revealing the instances where they used AI tools at work.
One of the welcome findings from the study was people in emerging economies reported higher adoption of AI in terms of work as well as personal use, are more trusting and accepting of AI, and feel more optimistic and excited about its use as compared to advanced economies. This was supported by the fact that three in five people trust AI systems in emerging countries, whereas in advanced countries only two in five trust them.
Talking about the state of AI use in Kuwait and the potential benefits it can unlock, Majid added:
'To facilitate AI adoption at scale, we must ensure AI is rooted deep in trust, supported by a strong ethical framework. That's why, larger organizations and policymakers will have a distinct part to play in ensuring that, especially considering the people need to trust an AI system before they can realize its full potential.'
Majid further explained that, for this very reason, KPMG developed its Trusted AI approach to make trust tangible and measurable for clients.
The study cautions that even though the age of working with AI is here, there needs to be adequate guidance and governance around the use of AI by students and in educational institutions. This reflected 76% of the students who relied on AI without evaluating its output, and 81% who used it to perform tasks rather than learning how to do them independently.
Given extensive use of AI is imminent, the publication called for robust governance and training to support responsible AI use in educational organizations just as places of work.
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