1.
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence
and Implications for Canadian Businesses
December 1, 2017

2.
E X P E C TAT I O N S A N D I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R G O V E R N M E N T
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R B U S I N E S S E S
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R B R A N D S A N D M A R K E T E R S
D O : A D O P T I O N A N D U S A G E
F E E L : E M OT I O N S A N D C O N C E R N S
T H I N K : E X P E C TAT I O N S A N D C O M P R E H E N S I O N
Contents
1 9
2 2
2 3
1 1
8
3

3.
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses 2
Executive Summary
Artificial intelligence has reached a turning point. Every day, there are new
advancements in AI, new ways for companies to use AI, new assessments of
threats and opportunities of AI. As more and more businesses gear up to adopt AI
technologies, do they truly understand how consumers perceive AI and what they
expect from it? How can brands apply these insights to solve their tough business
challenges? Given consumer perceptions, how can marketers influence innovation
and drive ethical standards around AI technology?
To understand how Canadians perceive AI, including what they think, feel, and do, we
conducted a survey in August 2017 with 1,001 people representing the general adult (18+)
population of Canada.
As you will soon learn, Canadians anticipate the advent of the AI economy with
wonderment, but also with concern. This paper provides important insights and lessons
into how government, businesses, and marketers can work to alleviate the trust issues and
build a bridge to the future where AI is a positive, trusted, and valuable component of
everyday products and services.
T H I N K F E E L D O

4.
3
Canadians have high expectations of AI
Like much of the world, the Canadian public has not escaped the AI fervor. In fact, AI has
become part of our social discourse with 52% of Canadians saying they have heard news or
participated in conversations about artificial intelligence in the past year. Though gender
differences suggest that men are more attuned to this AI news than women (63% for men
vs. 42% for women), there are no age differences as all generations of adult Canadians
reported similar exposure to the topic.
Given this level of awareness, it should not come as a surprise that expectations of AI are
also high. Half of Canadians (49%) think they use or will use AI-enhanced devices and tools
in their personal life in the next 5 years. Expectations are even higher among Millennials
(currently aged 18 to 34), of whom 58% already use or plan to use AI-enhanced devices in
their personal life in the next 5 years.
A significant percentage of Canadians (61%) think “AI will completely change the way we
live and work”. On the other hand, only 23% think “AI has nothing to do with the way I live
and work and is not likely to affect me in the future”. Except for a small minority,
Canadians are clearly listening for and anticipating the effects that AI will have upon their
daily lives.
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
W H AT C A N A D I A N S T H I N K O F A I

5.
4
AI understanding is surprisingly strong
Do the media over-hype expectations for AI? Do Canadians genuinely understand
what artificial intelligence is, or what it can and cannot do?
When asked, 45% of Canadians reported that they understand current levels of AI
developments “very well or somewhat well”. More specifically, men reported higher
comprehension levels than women (55% vs. 35%), as did Millennials (aged 18 to 34)
in comparison to Baby Boomers/Silent Generation (aged 50 to 64) (57% vs. 37%)
(see Figure 1).
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
45
55
35
57
48
37
21
Total Male Female 18-34 35-49 50-64 65 or older
Figure 1. Understanding of current level of AI development (very/somewhat well) %
Q: How well do you understand the current level of Artificial Intelligence development?
W H AT C A N A D I A N S T H I N K O F A I

6.
5
Canadians understand and anticipate
AI capabilities
It is, of course, one thing to say you understand, and a completely different thing to prove
you understand. To test this theory, we offered participants a series of potential AI
capabilities to decipher their true comprehension of AI, and Canadians passed the test.
The majority of participants were able to identify the most common uses of AI, e.g.,
recognize speech (72%) or translate languages (68%). And, they rejected the (current)
unrealistic applications, e.g., make moral choices (7%) or read people’s minds (5%) (see
Figure 2).
A small minority (15%) think that AI has already surpassed human intelligence, while
half (51%), similar to the experts in the field, think that AI will catch up to humans in 10
to 50 years.
Finally, when asked what artificial intelligence is, a majority (55%) correctly identified AI as
“self-learning algorithms designed to do a specific task”. It is alarming, however, that 42%
incorrectly indicated AI is “a self-aware computer program.”
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
W H AT C A N A D I A N S T H I N K O F A I

7.
6
W H AT C A N A D I A N S T H I N K O F A I
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
While this understanding of AI remains mainly non-technical (only 14% had even heard the
terms "machine learning" or "deep learning"), it does point to high levels of awareness and
anticipation among Canadians.
72
68
58
56
44
44
37
33
24
24
21
16
15
11
9
7
5
14
Figure 2. Understanding of current level of AI abilities, % | Q: To the best of your knowledge, at its
current state of development, which of the following things can Artificial Intelligence do?
Recognize speech
Translate between languages
Recognize pictures of animals and human faces
Recommend songs you’ll like
Spot burglars in your home
Detect a range of medical conditions from images
Trade stocks
Make a medical diagnosis
Interpret and understand the world around it
Replace you in your job
Handle insurance claims
Understand your personal problem and give you some advice
Laugh at a joke
Write sports articles for the Associated Press
Decide on court cases
Make moral choices
Read people’s minds
I don’t know/None of these

8.
7What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Women and men comprehend AI equally
As we saw earlier, men reported much higher levels of understanding Artificial Intelligence
than did women (55% of men vs 35% of women said they understand it very/somewhat
well). Digging deeper into the topic, the data showed that while women report lower levels
of understanding, they actually have the same level of comprehension - a very real
example of the Think versus Do premise.
When offered a series of potential AI applications, women correctly identified the
capabilities of current AI technologies with the same degree of accuracy as did men - with
one exception. Men were more likely than women to say that AI can trade stocks (43% vs.
31%).
In terms of defining AI, women were as likely as men to think that AI is “self-learning
algorithms designed to do a specific task” (54% of women vs. 56% of men), but less likely
to think that AI is a “self-aware computer program” (38% of women vs. 46% of men).
Whether men over-estimate their level of understanding or women under-estimate theirs,
the answer to that question is yet to be resolved.
W H AT C A N A D I A N S T H I N K O F A I

9.
8
H O W C A N A D I A N S F E E L A B O U T A I
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Canadians feel both wonderment and
concern about AI
Given relatively (and unexpectedly) high levels of comprehension of AI technology, it
should come as no surprise that Canadians do not fear AI.
From a set of positive, neutral, and negative emotions, participants were asked to select all of
the emotions that reflected their immediate reactions towards the words “Artificial
intelligence.” Feelings of curiosity were selected by 71% of participants (see Figure 3). Positive
feelings were chosen by about half of participants (47%), including 24% who chose anticipation
and 21% who chose excitement. On the other hand, about 40% of participants chose negative
feelings, including 34% who chose concern and 18% who chose fear/anxiety.
46
32
15 15
Mystery/unknown
Sciencefiction
Surprise
Confusion
Figure 3. Immediate reaction to Artificial Intelligence, % | Q: And more specifically, which of
the following words and phrases describe your immediate reaction when you hear the words
'Artificial Intelligence'?
71%
NET Curious
24
21 19
8 7
Anticipation
Excitement
Awe
Confidence
Joy
47%
NET Positive
34
18
11
3 2
Concern
Fear/Anxiety
Hype
Disappointment
Boredom
40%
NET Negative

10.
9What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
H O W C A N A D I A N S F E E L A B O U T A I
Though fear and anxiety were included in this motley collection of feelings, glaring
negative emotions (e.g., fear) were in the minority. The most common reactions - mystery,
science fiction, anticipation, and excitement - coalesce to create an overriding sense of
wonderment with a side helping of concern.
With those feelings of wonderment and the lack of fear, it is interesting that 77% of
Canadians are ready to use a personal AI assistant. In fact, Canadians are keen for an
assistant to have human characteristics such as a sense of humour (71%), a name (68%),
high ethical standards (68%), and values and worldviews that match their own (62%). In
essence, they are keen for an AI assistant that can engage with them on a human,
emotional level.
Job security and privacy are the top
two worries
When asked about potential negative outcomes of AI over their lifetime, a large majority of
participants worried about decreasing levels of privacy (75%) and increasing levels of job loss
(72%) (see Figure 4). These two negative effects generated the largest gender differences
among all of the options. Specifically, women were more likely than men, by as much as nine
percentage points, to single out these worries. There were, however, no age differences.

11.
10What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Societal concerns do not translate to
personal concerns
Delving deeper into these two concerns, job security presents a paradox. A large majority
of people worry that AI will put people out of work (72%) but, at the same time, only 14%
believed that they themselves might lose their job due to AI in the next five years (plus 3%
who said that they had already lost their job to AI). Canadians know that AI will have major
effects on employment, but they might not be ready to acknowledge its impact on their
own employment.
H O W C A N A D I A N S F E E L A B O U T A I
75
72
62
58
52
48
29
18
Figure4. Potentialnegativeeffects of AI | Q: ThinkingaboutallpotentialnegativeeffectsArtificial
Intelligencecanhave,how likelyarethefollowingscenariosto happenduringyour lifetime?
Increasing lack of privacy
Putting a lot of people out of jobs
Destroying a lot of businesses (e.g., retail)
Total control/surveillance of the citizens by the government
Creating more inequality
Changing global balance of power
The rise of the robots and enslavement of humanity
Eliminating the human race

12.
11
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
This feeling of personal job security may be partly due to the fact that 49% of Canadians
believe AI technologies will lead to “increased employment through a new ‘knowledge’
industry” and 54% expect AI to result in “increasing productivity and overall country’s
wealth”. In other words, Canadians know that AI will have major impacts on employment
but they feel that, in the end, those impacts will be positive.
When it comes to personal security in relation to AI, about a third of people admitted to
having concerns. Specifically, about 37% of participants feel annoyed that AI technology
“collects too much information" about them. The same proportion (37%) worries that “AI
in my phone (e.g., Siri, Google Assistant) constantly listens to my conversations” and 22%
feel concerned “about machines/artificial intelligence uncovering my deepest secrets”.
Canadians may have resolved concerns about their own employment prospects but
they have yet to resolve concerns about their own privacy.
Canadians are ready to use AI
technologies in their personal life
Canadians reported a rather high level of comfort with using AI technologies for various
managerial aspects of their lives. They’re quite content to use AI when it comes to
scheduling and bookings (70%), recommendations for shopping (59%), and home utilities
management (73%).

13.
12What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
However, comfort levels decrease in areas that directly affect their personal lives and well-
being (see Figure 5). In fact, the tasks that generated the lowest comfort levels were also
the tasks that generated the largest differences of opinion between men and women.
Participants were least comfortable with using AI to diagnosis medical issues without
human involvement (50% for men vs. 37% for women), drive vehicles (45% for men vs.
33% for women), and interact with children (42% for men vs. 35% for women). Essentially,
people are happy to use AI to deal with things, but when it comes to the personal health
and safety of “me and my loved ones”, people aren’t yet convinced.
73
70
59
59
59
56
53
52
49
49
43
39
38
Figure 5. Comfort level with AI in various areas of life, (somewhat/very comfortable) %
Q: How comfortable would you feel if an AI would…
Regulate the temperature in your home (based on your habits)
Organize and notify you about your schedule and appointments
Control your house utilities and appliances
Provide you with recommendations on what to purchase
Provide you with recommendations on what to eat
Provide you with financial advice
Arrange your travel plans
Answer your calls to customer service
Send personal messages to people in your contact lists
Provide you with legal advice
Diagnose your medical condition (without doctor’s involvement)
Drive you or your family (without human involvement)
Interact with and teach your children
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I

14.
13What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Canadians are prepared to upend the traditional
Customer Decision Journey
Earlier, we learned that about 77% of Canadians would use an AI assistant for shopping.
This includes 17% of people who are prepared to completely hand over the entire
shopping experience to AI. It also includes 28% of people who would use AI to find the best
price, and 32% who would use AI to discover options from which they can choose. Given
that major portions of marketing and advertising processes are dependent on these
components, the Customer Decision Journey is headed for change – fast!
At the same time, it’s interesting that 23% of people can’t imagine using AI for shopping
when many commercial websites already use AI, or precursors of AI, to recommend
products and services as part of the product shopping experience or as part of their
marketing and adverting engines.
Despite high expectations and comfort, adoption
of AI technologies is still in its infancy
We know that Canadians are aware of the types of AI technologies that currently exist and
they’re prepared to use them. However, only 12% of participants reported that they
currently use AI technologies in their personal life right now. Similarly, only 11% said they
use them at work right now.
That isn’t to say Canadians aren’t open to acquiring AI technologies. Offered the choice
between buying an AI-powered product and a standard product at the same price, more
than one third (37%) of participants opted for the AI-enhanced one. Clearly, Canadians are
ready to embrace AI technologies. They just haven’t - yet.
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I

15.
14What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Lack of clear unique benefit and trust
are barriers to AI adoption
Besides using AI technologies without realizing it (e.g., product predictions, text or song
prediction, smart home devices), low adoption rates may be the result of not knowing the
specific benefits that AI-powered products already offer. We see this in the fact that the AI
technologies Canadians already use are the technologies also viewed as most useful. For
example, “promptly getting answers to my questions” (46%) is an ability that people
already have on their computers and phones (see Figure 6).
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
46
43
43
35
34
32
28
26
24
22
21
18
18
13
Figure6. Mostusefulpersonalapplicationsof AI,% | Q: Whichabilitiesof ArtificialIntelligencewouldbe
mostusefulto you personally?
Promptly getting answers to your questions
Health assessment/diagnosis
Managing home utilities to ensure savings
Self-driving cars
Helping make best financial choices
Managing everyday tasks
Simplifying shopping
Increasing your productivity
Creating a personalized music list for you
Getting prompt help from an AI CS rep
Arranging your travel plans
Developing tailored learning program
Helping make best shopping decisions
None

16.
15What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Low adoption rates are also likely the result of a lack of trust. While many companies are
excited to take advantage of the benefits of new AI-based marketing technologies, many
consumers currently feel unprotected from and exploited by companies trying upsell or
seemingly mislead them with those technologies.
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
37
37
37
30
25
25
24
1
9
Figure 7. What consumers find annoying with online purchase recommendations, % | Q: What are
the most annoying things about companies providing you with recommendations online based on
your purchase history? Please select no more than 3.
My purchase or browsing history is
being used without my approval
They show me the products they want
me to buy, not what I want to buy
They collect too much
information about me
The recommendations
follow me anywhere I go online
They don’t have a good understanding of my
needs, show me the products I don’t need
It is not clear if the recommended products
have best price or over-priced
They show me the products
I already purchased
Other
None of these

17.
16What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
Consumers want AI technology that
works for them, not just for companies.
Recommendation engines are an obvious example of how technologies have caused
consumers to be disappointed in AI technologies and mistrust companies. Canadians are
generally fine with AI algorithms offering shopping recommendations (52%), but many
people (37%) find it annoying that those same algorithms “show me the products they
[the company] want me to buy, not what I want to buy”. Even now, shoppers are
regularly annoyed when they continue to be shown products they have already
purchased (see Figure 7).
Сhatbots are another example of AI technologies that have demonstrated lackluster
success thus far. Chatbots are quickly taking over customer service roles, and most
consumers are okay with that (52%). However, consumers demand to know (78%), and
rightly so, whether they are talking to a human being or a bot.
With so much uncertainty around AI technologies and the potential to abuse them, many
people are suspicious of companies that implement AI, and negative associations (73%)
of those companies outweigh positive ones (58%) (see Figures 8 and 9). Indeed, 41% of
people believe that companies using AI are “focused on reducing their costs at the
expense of people”, while only 12% agree that “they are focused on providing the best
product and service to customers”. Consumers want AI technology that works for them,
not just for companies.

18.
17What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
29
22
16
12
12
12
11
11
Figure 8. Positive reactions towards companies using AI, % | Q: Many companies are moving
towards using Artificial Intelligence in their operations and communications with customers
What do you think about them?
They are the future
They are not afraid to invest in new
technologies
They are/will be making my life easier
They are focused on providing the best
product and service to customers
They are cool and innovative
They create more high-tech / high paid
jobs
They contribute to the advancement of our
economy overall
They are focused on providing the best
value to their customers
58%
NET
Positive

19.
18What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
W H AT C A N A D I A N S D O W I T H A I
41
36
29
18
13
11
3
Figure 9. Negative reactions towards companies using AI, % | Q: Many companies are moving
towards using Artificial Intelligence in their operations and communications with customers
What do you think about them?
They are focused on reducing their costs at
the expense of people
They steal jobs from people
I am worried that they might misuse a
powerful AI to their own advantage
They don’t have any ethical standards for
Artificial Intelligence in place
They contribute to the demise of human
race
They create unhealthy competition
Other (please specify)
73%
NET
Negative

20.
19
E X P E C TAT I O N S F O R G O V E R N M E N T
What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
The government is expected to play an
important role
AI technologies are unquestionably driving social change, and Canadians are looking to the
government to be a part of and help lead this change.
The majority of Canadians expect the government to play a role, particularly in the
regulatory area. Specifically, 58% of Canadians want the government to “develop safety
guidelines for using AI technologies”, and 54% of Canadians expect the government to
“create new laws and regulations with regards to using AI technologies” (see Figure 10). On
the other hand, only 11% of Canadians do not want the government involved in any way in
the process of unleashing AI technologies on society.
Developsafetyguidelines
forusingAItechnologies
Createnewlawsandregulationswith
regardstousingAItechnologies
Providefreetrainingprogramsfor
peoplepushedoutofworkforceby
AItechnologiesandautomation
Createmoreeducationalandtraining
programstoensurewehaveenough
AIspecialists
HeavilyregulatetheAIfield
Placeheaviertaxesonthecompanies
thatsubstitutehumanlabour
withAIandautomation
InvestintheAIsectortomakesureour
countryhasacompetitiveadvantage
ProvidelocalAIcompanies
withtaxbreaks
Thegovernmentshouldnot
beinvolvedinanyway
58 54 48
39 35 28 28
7 11
Figure 10. What the government should do with AI, % | Q: How comfortable would you
feel if an AI would…

21.
20What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
While few people are aware of specifics around the Canadian government’s current
investment in AI (9%), the majority (84%) support this investment. However, most
support this investment with at least some concerns (58%). If these investments are to
serve the public well and continue to generate broad support, the government must
clearly communicate the benefits to the public.
Given that most public concerns about artificial intelligence are centered on job
security, the government must come up with clear programs that both create “more
educational and training programs to ensure we have enough AI specialists” (38%
agree) and provide “free training programs for people pushed out of workforce by AI
technologies and automation” (48% agree).
Indications are that the government endorses AI technologies, but if they decide to
also use AI systems, they must ensure those systems retain a human face when
communicating with the public. We have learned that Canadians are generally
comfortable with AI customer service representatives helping them to book tickets or
hotels, but only 14% would be comfortable if an AI agent answered their government
service inquiries. This concern comes back to a lack of trust in AI technologies that
affect people’s personal health and safety.
E X P E C TAT I O N S F O R G O V E R N M E N T

22.
21What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
Canadians are rooting for their country to
be at the front of AI research and
development. The government must
facilitate our potentially painful
transition to the knowledge economy.
Lessons for the government:
1. Invest in AI Development: Invest in AI that reflects the public’s
desire for a brighter future in the knowledge economy.
2. Educate and Create Jobs: Create job transition plans and safety nets
for workers displaced by AI technologies.
3. Create Regulatory Boundaries: Create new laws and regulations
with regards to AI development and use, particularly with respect to
the privacy and security of personal information.
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R G O V E R N M E N T

23.
22What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
With high levels of awareness,
comprehension, expectations, and
readiness for adoption, businesses must
create socially responsible AI technologies.
Lessons for businesses:
1. Develop AI Purposefully: Build algorithms that best serve
customer needs and make meaningful differences in both jobs
and personal lives.
2. Use AI Smartly: Minimize pain points and build trust. Consider
broader applications, and work to create industry standards rather
than company-specific standards.
3. Adopt AI Responsibly: Broaden the embodiment of social
responsibility to encompass more than just supporting a good
cause or using green technologies. Social responsibility must now
also include understanding how business strategies affect society
and developing strategic plans that maximize the positive effects
while minimizing the negative impacts of AI.
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R B U S I N E S S E S

24.
23What Canadians Think About Artificial Intelligence and Implications for Canadian Businesses
The way consumers engage with brands
is going to change rapidly which will
greatly impact how we market. Brands
and marketers must strive for purposeful
and ethical AI technologies that promote
public trust.
Lessons for the brands and marketers:
1. Foster Consumer-Driven Innovation: Shape the end-user
experience in a positive way by satisfying specific needs rather
than simply using AI for 'upselling.’
2. Establish High Ethical Standards: Personalize content such that it
is useful and impactful for consumers not simply a manipulation
of human psychology. Rather than using AI technologies to
maximize short-term gains leading to increased customer
attrition, create AI technologies that help to build trust and foster
long-term customer satisfaction and engagement.
3. Be Transparent and Honest in Communications: Be prepared to
raise business standards and increase transparency around how AI
technologies are used. Take advantage of AI capabilities to
dramatically improve customer service and engagement.
I M P L I C AT I O N S F O R B R A N D S A N D M A R K E T E R S

25.
Point of contact for inquiries:
Marina Laven | Director
T 416.488.6422 x 240
mlaven@sklarwilton.com
2200 Yonge Street, Suite 400
Toronto, Ontario Canada M4S 2C6
www.sklarwilton.com
How is your business addressing
consumer perceptions of AI? Are you
prepared to face the changes and
challenges AI presents?
Sklar Wilton & Associates will guide
your business through the disruptive
force of AI and help solve your tough
business challenges.