August 14, 2025
AI Adoption Is Rising, But the Consumer Trust Gap Widens
A new joint report from HubSpot and SurveyMonkey reveals a widening disconnect between how quickly businesses are adopting artificial intelligence (AI) and how cautiously consumers are embracing it. The findings highlight four tensions shaping today’s AI landscape: rapid business integration vs. cautious consumer uptake, AI-forward content strategies vs. low trust in AI-generated experiences, gaining notice vs. capturing attention, and maximising customer data while remaining transparent.
Businesses Race Ahead, Consumers Tap the Brakes
Across marketing, sales, and customer experience (CX), AI has moved from experiment to essential. Three-quarters of marketing leaders, along with 59% of CX and sales leaders, say AI is more important to their strategies this year than last. Popular applications include analytics, market research, advertising, personalisation, and SEO-driven content creation.
Yet consumer adoption tells a different story. Only one-third report using more AI this year, and just 19% say they feel excited about it. Scepticism and concern outweigh enthusiasm; 34% feel concerned, 30% are sceptical, and only 29% find it impressive. Even among Gen Z and Millennials, often assumed to be AI’s biggest fans, fewer than one in four express excitement.
Consumers are seeing AI everywhere; 70% have noticed it in marketing emails, ads, and customer service, but exposure hasn’t led to approval. Fewer than one in four say they “like” or “love” AI in these interactions, and a large majority still prefer human support. In customer service specifically, 82% would choose a human over AI, even if response time and outcomes were identical.
AI Search Gains Use, But Not Full Confidence
AI-powered search is also gaining traction. Over half of consumers (56%) read AI-generated summaries when searching, and 70% say these make information easier to find. However, trust lags, only 30% trust AI search results completely or a lot, while 50% verify answers and 17% assume they’re inaccurate.
In addition, there are many concerns about data usage. Most consumers believe their data is being used to train AI, and nearly three in five say it’s very important for companies to disclose when AI is being used. Transparency is emerging as a non-negotiable part of brand trust, and 28% of consumers have stopped buying from a brand over its AI practices.
Teams Prepare, But Knowledge Gaps Remain
Business leaders are aware of the challenges. Key risks cited include data security (62%), biased outputs (61%), and loss of customer trust (54%). Despite these concerns, the biggest barrier to adoption is a lack of knowledge and training.
Overall, 68% of leaders say their teams are prepared for the AI shift, marketing leads with 77%, followed by CX at 72% and sales at 59%. Training investment is growing, with 57% of leaders reporting moderate to significant time spent developing AI skills. However, very small businesses (1–5 employees) lag in both resources and readiness.
HubSpot VP Jonathan Hunt describes today’s top marketing teams as “AI-first” but emphasises the need for proper guardrails to scale ethically. SurveyMonkey’s Priya Gill echoes that while AI brings efficiency, human creativity and empathy remain essential for meaningful connections.
