Research on Consumer AI

Recommended Reading

This reading list brings together research on how AI is shaping learning, work, and everyday behavior, and what consumers think about AI — and points to a significant opportunity: build products that deliver real value, address consumer concerns, and protect user's well-being.

Public Perception and Everyday Use

Pew Research Center

Key Findings About How Americans View Artificial Intelligence

Surveys U.S. public attitudes toward AI. Americans express more concern than optimism, particularly around jobs, misinformation, and erosion of human skills.

Anthropic

What 81,000 People Want From AI

Reports insights from over 80,000 global AI users on how they use and perceive AI. Users value productivity and learning support but express concerns about reliability, overreliance, and loss of control.

Anthropic

Introducing Anthropic Interviewer: What 1,250 Professionals Told Us About Working With AI

Presents findings from 1,250 AI-conducted interviews with professionals. Workers are broadly optimistic but want to preserve tasks that define their identity, while creatives navigate stigma and displacement anxiety.

Everyday Use by Teens / Gen Z

Harvard Business Review

How Gen Z Uses Gen AI—and Why It Worries Them

Reports on survey data exploring how members of Generation Z use generative AI. Most within the 18–28 age range use AI pragmatically, but many worry it may reduce learning, harm critical thinking, and crowd out social learning.

Pew Research Center

How Teens Use and View AI

Examines how U.S. teens use AI across school, social, and personal contexts. Teens widely adopt AI for learning and creativity while remaining cautious about accuracy and overreliance.

RAND Corporation

More Students Use AI for Homework, and More Believe It Harms Critical Thinking

Reports findings from the RAND American Youth Panel. AI use among middle school through college students increased substantially in 2025, while a majority believe it could harm their critical thinking skills.

Common Sense Media

AI Guidance and Resources for Parents

Offers guidance on AI use for children and families. Emphasizes supervision, transparency, and critical engagement.

Current Challenges of AI

Harvard Business Review

AI Doesn't Reduce Work—It Intensifies It

Analyzes AI's impact on workplace expectations. AI increases output demands and expands workloads rather than reducing effort.

Harvard Business Review

When Using AI Leads to Brain Fry

Explores cognitive effects of sustained AI use. Frequent interaction leads to mental fatigue and reduced capacity for deep focus.

Brookings Institution

A New Direction for Students in an AI World

Outlines how education must adapt to AI. Emphasizes critical thinking and AI literacy over memorization.

RAND Corporation

Preparing Education Systems for AI Integration

Evaluates institutional readiness for AI in education. Most systems are unprepared, risking increased inequality without reform.

Anthropic

AI Assistance and the Future of Coding Skills

Studies AI's impact on programming. AI boosts productivity but may reduce deep understanding and increase reliance.

Association for Computing Machinery

The AI Deskilling Paradox

Explores how AI affects expertise. Productivity gains may come at the cost of long-term skill erosion.

Psychology Today

The Emerging Problem of AI Psychosis

Explores links between AI and psychosis-related experiences. AI can reinforce delusional thinking in vulnerable individuals.

Michigan Medicine

AI and Psychosis: What to Know, What to Do

Provides a clinical perspective on AI and psychosis. AI may shape symptoms but is not a root cause.