We asked about the following uses of robotics: driverless cars and robotic care assistants.
In the case of driverless cars, nearly two-thirds of the public (63%) feel that improvements to accessibility by making travel by car easier for people who have difficulty driving is a benefit. This highlights positive perceptions, and potentially high expectations, around AI making tasks easier for all of society. For robotic care assistants, approximately half of the public feel faster support (48%) and being less likely than humans to discriminate against some groups of people in society (37%) are key benefits.
82% of the public are concerned about people missing out on human interactions through the delivery of care via robotic care assistants
Table 3: Most commonly selected benefits for robotics
‘Which of the following, if any, are ways you think the use of this technology will be beneficial?’
| Technology | Top three chosen benefits 2022/23 | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Driverless cars | 1 Improve accessibility | 63% |
| 2 More accurate than human drivers | 32% | |
| 3 Result in fewer accidents | 32% | |
| Robotic care assistants | 1 Faster and easier | 47% |
| 2 More accurate than professionals | 45% | |
| 3 Less discriminatory | 37% | |
| Technology | Top three chosen benefits 2024/25 | Percentage |
| Driverless cars | 1 Improve accessibility | 63% |
| 2 Free up time to do other things | 35% | |
| 3 Result in fewer accidents | 34% | |
| Robotic care assistants | 1 Faster and easier | 48% |
| 2 Less discriminatory | 37% | |
| 3 More effective than professionals | 37% |
People are concerned about a lack of human interaction in AI technologies, the potential overreliance on the technology at the expense of human judgement, and issues of who to hold accountable when the technology makes a mistake. As with benefits, the concerns also vary depending on where robotics are applied. The public are worried about losing human interaction in applications of AI delivering one-to-one care. For example, 82% of the public are concerned about people missing out on human interactions through the delivery of care via robotic care assistants. While the most popular concern for driverless cars relates to unreliability and the accountability when the technology makes a mistake.
Table 4: Most commonly selected concerns for robotics
‘Which of the following, if any, are concerns that you have about the use of this technology?’
| Technology | Top three chosen concerns 2022/23 | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Driverless cars | 1 Unreliable | 62% |
| 2 Accountability for mistakes | 59% | |
| 3 Transparency in decision-making | 51% | |
| Robotic care assistants | 1 Loss of human interaction | 78% |
| 2 Job cuts | 46% | |
| 3 Accountability for mistakes | 45% | |
| Technology | Top three chosen concerns 2024/25 | Percentage |
| Driverless cars | 1 Unreliable | 69% |
| 2 Accountability for mistakes | 66% | |
| 3 Transparency in decision making | 57% | |
| Robotic care assistants | 1 Loss of human interaction | 82% |
| 2 Technology being unsafe | 59% | |
| 3 Job cuts | 53% |
Image credit: Elise Racine / https://betterimagesofai.org / https://creativecommons.org/li…