According to a report by Counterpoint Research, generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) was familiar to 32 per cent of the respondents in a survey across seven countries, namely USA, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Poland, and Japan. GenAI awareness was highest in North America (72 per cent) and lowest in Japan (7 per cent). Smartphones have been playing a key role in the propagation of Gen AI, with nearly three-fourths of the respondents accessing the technology through their devices, led by Gen Z users. As smartphones remain integral to people’s daily lives, 59 per cent of the respondents expressed plans to purchase a GenAI-enabled smartphone within the next year, with the trend being strongest in the US, followed by Germany and France.

The aim of the survey, conducted in September 2024, was to assess people’s awareness of GenAI, the impact of the technology, concerns, value addition, and influence on future smartphone purchase decisions. Over 25,000 individuals were contacted, but a detailed survey was conducted with a focused group of 3,535 respondents.

  • Awareness: 32 per cent of the respondents from a sample size of more than 25,000 are aware of Gen AI, primarily through chatbots and search engines.
  • Smartphone usage: Among the aware users, 73 per cent have used GenAI on their smartphones, highlighting the device’s key role in boosting awareness and monetisation opportunities.
  • Key benefit: 69 per cent of the users value GenAI for its time-saving capabilities.
  • Purchase intent: 59 per cent are open to switching to a GenAI smartphone by September 2025, with the US leading the trend.
  • Willingness to pay: Over two-thirds of the respondents are ready to pay extra for GenAI-enabled smartphones.

Commenting on the report, Tarun Pathak, research director, Counterpoint, said, “Gen AI has quickly gained traction due to its accessibility and versatility across personal, professional, and educational applications. Everyday tasks, such as writing assistance, document editing, and research have been made simpler, proving it is an invaluable tool for users. Writing assistance has emerged as the top use case, thanks to its widespread availability, ease of use, and verifiable outputs. Other popular applications like image generation and voice assistants are also seeing significant adoption. However, features like ‘Circle to Search’ and ‘Call/Meeting Summaries’ ranked lower, likely due to concerns over accuracy and privacy.”

Meanwhile, Mohit Agarwal, research director, Counterpoint, said “Diving deep into awareness and monetisation opportunities, smartphones are playing a pivotal role in Gen AI’s proliferation coupled with strong marketing as consumers across most regions gain awareness of the technology. With smartphones being an essential part of daily life, the inclusion of Gen AI features has become a key factor influencing smartphone purchases. However, many consumers remain unaware of the benefits of on-device Gen AI. With only 19 per cent of users in the survey willing to pay a premium for a Gen AI-enabled phone, smartphone manufacturers may need to adopt low-cost entry models and explore alternative revenue streams, such as monetising applications or offering large language model (LLM) services to developers.”