Consumers ready to turn to Gen AI for relationship advice

More than a third of consumers would consider turning to generative AI, or Gen AI, for relationship advice, new figures from KPMG in the UK reveal on Valentine’s Day.

In a new poll, 35% of respondents said they would accept a helping hand from these technologies, including asking for advice on chat-up lines, suggestions for date locations, or guidance on how best to propose.

Results from Gen AI are not always correct; it can suffer from ‘hallucinations’—incorrect or misleading results generated by the model for an unknown reason. So, when respondents were questioned if they would ask a Gen AI tool for relationship advice if they knew the technology was highly accurate, the number of people happy to do so rose to 44%.

The 35-44 age group was the most likely to seek assistance from Gen AI, with 39% stating that they would ask it a question about this topic.

Some consumers (12%) said they would prefer to ask a Gen AI tool for relationship advice over a person, and almost a quarter (22%) stated that they would give equal favour to guidance from either a person or a bot.

The data also shows that people trust these tools enough to enter private information, with over half (56%) saying they were likely or very likely to ask a Gen AI tool a personal question they wouldn’t ask a friend or family member.

On the other hand, others are more worried about the risks of this technology, with 47% of respondents concerned that confidential information entered into this type of AI could be reshared.

Commenting on the findings, Ian West, Head of Technology at KPMG UK, said:

“Gen AI presents an opportunity for organisations in the dating and relationship industry to support activities such as filtering fake accounts and better partner matching. However, businesses need to be wary that consumers are prepared to trust Gen AI tools with very personal information and that the right consideration should be given for how to use their data responsibly, ethically, and safely.”

-ENDS-

Notes to editor:

The research was conducted on behalf of KPMG by OnePoll, between the 5^th and the 12^th of February 2024. 1,200 UK adults were polled who use Large Language Models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT and Google Bard, which are a type of generative AI, at least once every few months.

Generative AI, or Gen AI, is a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that can understand, summarise, generate, and predict new content such as text, images, and videos.

About KPMG UK

KPMG LLP, a UK limited liability partnership, operates from 20 offices across the UK with approximately 18,000 partners and staff. The UK firm recorded a revenue of £2.96 billion in the year ended 30 September 2023.  

KPMG is a global organisation of independent professional services firms providing Audit, Legal, Tax and Advisory services. It operates in 143 countries and territories with more than 273,000 partners and employees working in member firms around the world. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such. KPMG International Limited is a private English company limited by guarantee. KPMG International Limited and its related entities do not provide services to clients. 

For media enquiries, please contact:

Lizzy Chesters – Media Relations Manager
T: +44 (0)20 3078 3732
E: lizzy.chesters@kpmg.co.uk 

KPMG UK Media Relations Team:
T: +44 (0) 207 694 8773