Results

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

As generative AI becomes ever more integrated into daily life, people across Switzerland are forming views, developing habits, and asking hard questions about what this technology means for them, their relationships, and society. Excitement and concern coexist – often in the same person. Understanding this complexity is not a side note to the AI debate; it is the debate.

About the Report
“Loved. Feared. And Here to Stay: How People in German- and French-Speaking Switzerland Think, Use, and Talk About Generative AI” presents findings from the first ai-dentities study, a survey of 1,000 people aged 15–79 in German- and French-speaking Switzerland conducted in October 2025. It examines how people feel about the growing presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in daily life, how frequently they use generative AI tools, and how the two relate. A supplementary metaphor exercise – asking respondents to complete the sentence “For me, generative artificial intelligence is like ___ because ___” – provides a qualitative window into the conceptual frames that shape people’s understanding.

Key Findings

  • Concern outweighs excitement. 40% are more concerned than excited about AI in daily life, compared with 21% who are more excited than concerned. The dominant public mood is cautious, not enthusiastic.
  • A substantial group has not taken a side. 39% describe themselves as equally concerned and excited about AI’s growing role in daily life. Rather than polarised, the picture is a public with mixed and sometimes contradictory attitudes.
  • Age is the sharpest dividing line. Among under-30s, 61% use generative AI tools often and only 6% have never used them. Among over-60s, 52% have never used them and only 13% use them often. The same age gradient appears in attitudes: 60% of over-60s are more concerned than excited versus 31% of under-30s.
  • Women in this sample are more frequent users than men, and somewhat less concerned. Women report more frequent generative AI tool use than men (40% vs. 31% reporting “often”) and are somewhat less “more concerned than excited” (37% vs. 44%). This finding should be interpreted cautiously: the mean attitude difference is modest (2.8 vs. 2.6 on a five-point scale), and online panels tend to over-represent digitally active populations.
  • Attitude scores and conceptual language often diverge. Even respondents who score maximum excitement on the attitude scale frequently reach for cautious, ironic, or ambivalent metaphors to describe generative AI. What people say they feel and how they conceptualise generative AI are not the same thing.
  • Concerns are about loss of human agency and control. When concerned respondents describe what worries them, the dominant themes are loss of human agency and control, or more specific themes such as surveillance, power imbalance, and cognitive displacement.


This report presents the first survey and results of the ai-dentities project. A second survey and report will follow in the fall. Before the release of the second report, we will regularly share data snapshots, visual insights, expert commentary, thematic deep dives, youth perspectives, and behind-the-scenes updates – all published on our website and across our communication channels.

We warmly invite you to get involved. Whether you want to share your own experiences with AI, help bring the project’s findings to wider audiences, contribute a creative perspective, or register your school for the ai-dentities youth survey – there are many ways to engage. Visit our Participate page to learn more, or reach out to us directly at s.cortesi@ikmz.uzh.ch.

Supporters 
This work was made possible by a generous unrestricted gift from Sunrise and by the support of the UZH Foundation, YouMedia, and the TUM Think Tank, as well as the broader IKMZ research community at UZH and our Sounding Board of Swiss journalists covering AI and digital transformation.