Curious, Cautious, and Ready to Learn

Between 3rd and 10th October 2025, we asked 129 Cornish residents what they really think about artificial intelligence (AI). Is it a buzzword, a breakthrough, or something to fear? The answers reveal a mix of curiosity, caution, and a few striking differences by age and gender.

How familiar are we with AI?

Most people have at least heard of AI, but deep knowledge is less common. One if four (24%) say they’re “very familiar” – to the extent that they could comfortably hold a conversation about it, while seven in ten (69%) feel “somewhat familiar.” The rest admit they’re hazy on the details.

This awareness is mostly coming from the news (81%), social media (70%), from friends and family (59%) or personal experience (50%). Those under the age of 55 are more likely to have discussed AI with friends and family (75% versus 51% of those aged 55+).

Despite feeling they are at least somewhat familiar with the topic, most (91%) still feel that they should know learn more about it than they currently know.

Everyday encounters with AI

AI isn’t just in tech headlines – it’s already woven into daily life for many. Two in five (40%) of the What Cornwall Thinks panel say they already use AI-powered tools on at least a weekly basis, although an equal number (41%) say that they don’t know if they are using AI or say that (as far as they know) they never use it. Those under 55 are more likely to use it (57% use it at least monthly compared with 38% of those aged 55+). AI tools used in Cornwall include smart speakers like Alexa (35%) and Google Assistant (19%) as well as online AI tools such as ChatGPT (OpenAI) (33%) and Microsoft Copilot (25%).

Interestingly, when presented with a list of common AI-powered tools, the proportion of those saying they never used AI drops from 27% to 5% – clearly for many, these tools are simply not thought of as “AI”, and its regular use is actually close to universal.

Amongst those aware that they are using AI-powered tools, this is most likely to be interactions with customer service chatbots (55%), at work (43%) or photo editing/creation tools (30%).  Some also mentioned navigation/traffic apps, translation tools, educational tools, social media feeds and home devices (such as heating, lighting or security) as tools that they know, or suspect, use artificial intelligence.

Excitement vs worry

Cornwall isn’t rushing headlong into the AI revolution. Whilst just over half (54%) say they are excited by the opportunities from AI, for almost all of these this is “a little”, not “a lot” – and a third (31%) don’t see the prospect as exciting at all.  Most (66%) think AI is developing too quickly, whilst only 2% think it needs to be developed faster.

Of course, being excited by the potential of AI doesn’t preclude being worried too:

• 55% of Cornish residents who gave an unambiguous answer to both questions say they are both excited and worried by AI
• 33% are worried and not at all excited
• 8% are excited and not at all worried
• 4% are neither excited nor worried

Only one in ten (9%) say they are not worried at all.  Men are less worried – 18% say they are not at all worried about AI compared with only 3% of women who are not at all worried.

One respondent encapsulated the overall mood well:

“I’m cautious, I can see some of the benefits, but I’m cautious about the potential downsides.”

Those key downsides, as seen by the panel, are the application of AI in fraud/scams (84% are concerned about this) or AI fuelling confusion and disinformation (the “blurring of reality”, as one respondent put it) in providing answers and material it has generated as if these are factual, not fabricated (83% see this as a worry).  Other significant concerns are that the rise of AI may put too much power in the hands of tech companies, the reduction in human contact, the lack of (or inadequate) regulation, the risks to data security and privacy, the risks in AI being used instead of human creativity, and job losses where AI is given work that humans were doing.  One or two even expressed the negative of having to put up with listening to others bang on about AI, whether those others were praising it or complaining about it!

Women are much more likely than men to be concerned by the potential for AI to reduce human interaction, (81% vs 60%), poor regulation (81% vs 58%) and AI replacing human creativity (81% vs 53%).  As mentioned, men are less likely to be worried by AI at all.

Cornwall-specific hopes and fears

When asked what they thought the impact of AI would be on Cornwall specifically over the next five years, respondents were extremely split.  A third (34%) said they did not know.  Of those with a view, a third (35%) think it will make no difference, a third (31%) think it will improve things, and a third (33%) think it will make things worse for Cornwall.  This split did not differ by age or gender – younger people, for example, are no more or less likely to be optimistic about the potential of AI for Cornwall.

Those who felt AI will make no difference said this was because Cornwall is slow to adopt new technology, has poor digital infrastructure, or because they don’t expect local people, services, or the council to use AI effectively. Others felt AI won’t affect their daily lives, were unsure or sceptical of its benefits, or believed its overall impacts would balance out.

Those who felt AI will make life in Cornwall worse expressed strong concerns around unemployment, erosion of community and human contact, and the unreliability or manipulative potential of AI.

Most who felt AI will make life in Cornwall better believe it will improve efficiency and productivity, especially for businesses, speed up access to services (especially the NHS and local government), help isolated or elderly residents, and assist with crime prevention and policing.  Others mentioned its potential to create new opportunities for work, rather than take jobs away, to improve education, housing and planning, tourism and hospitality, preserving Cornish culture and heritage, and facilitate rather than erode arts and creativity.

Looking ahead: who’s in charge?

Fast-forward five years: who should make the big decisions – humans or AI? Overwhelmingly, people want humans in the driving seat. Most (88%) say “only humans” or “mostly humans,” a few (6%) imagine a 50/50 split (2% think AI would do a better job than humans, and 3% say “don’t know”).

But is that what we think will happen?  47% of the panel still think humans will be entirely, or mostly, making the big decisions (healthcare, policing, the economy etc) in five years’ time.  One in eight (13%) think these decisions will be 50/50 in five years, and a quarter (26%) think AI will be making most if not all of these major decisions.

Women are more likely to trust humans over AI (47% think humans are more likely to make fair and accurate decisions in areas such as healthcare, banking of government service, compared with 29% of men).  Men are most likely to say they trust neither humans nor AI to be fair or accurate (35% vs 25% of women).

Cornwall’s verdict on AI?

Curious but cautious. People see potential, with 72% expecting it to make a difference to their everyday lives in the next five years, be that work, study, shopping, leisure or communication. And the reality is, most if not all of us are using it already, whether we know it or not.

But seeing potential does not mean there are no reservations: 38% expect AI’s impact to be, on balance, positive, 34% expect it to be negative overall.

If the UK Government could make one simple rule about AI in the next 5 years, Cornwall would advise: transparency, regulation and caution.  As one respondent said:

“AI Should be used to enhance, support and in certain cases streamline certain tasks for us. It should never replace our own capacity for decision-making, fact checking all accountability. AI must remain a supporter, never a dictator.”