A quarter of international consumers would let AI tell them what to buy Even when we're grocery shopping

According to a report by Accenture, a quarter of consumers in several countries around the world, including Italy, the United States and China, would be willing to let AI decide what they should buy, both for matters considered trivial such as grocery shopping, and for more personal activities such as shopping.

The survey highlights two seemingly opposing trends: on the one hand, a growing willingness to delegate decisions to new technologies; on the other, a desire to preserve a principle of self-determination, keeping the final say on purchases. But if these are the premises, and if technologies continue to evolve until they become an integral part of our way of being in the world, will there come a time when we will no longer be able to choose for ourselves? And above all: how will these increasingly impersonal decisions transform the market and the consumers, human and otherwise, they are aimed at?

The influence of AI on our choices

Accenture conducted an online survey of over 25,000 consumers in 16 countries, analyzing different product categories from food and household goods to clothing and footwear. The results paint a multifaceted picture in which consumers show themselves increasingly willing to collaborate with AI agents the greater control they are able to maintain over the decision-making process. Conversely, this openness decreases progressively as responsibility is delegated to AI.

«Our research shows that people delegate to artificial intelligence the aspects of shopping perceived as work or a hassle, while retaining control over choices that have personal meaning». 85% of respondents say they are willing to collaborate with an AI agent to identify the best option, while 32% would go so far as to let artificial intelligence decide what to purchase, provided that the final payment is made by the consumer.

Only 9% would be willing to allow AI to fully complete the entire purchasing process. The findings also suggest that trust in these technologies could increase with experience: 31% of respondents said that experimenting with AI agents in low-cost, low-risk purchases would make them more likely to use them in the future.

How is the market changing?

The report adds to the many studies conducted to measure consumers’ actual interest in artificial intelligence in retail, a sector in which no definitive consensus seems to have emerged yet. The variables are many and can significantly influence the results. On one hand, an international study such as the one by Accenture suggests growing openness toward AI, while on the other hand a recent survey conducted in the United States by YouGov reached opposite conclusions.

Among the most interesting aspects emerging from the report is the need for brands to be recognized not only by consumers but also by the AI agents that will assist them in their choices. 37% of consumers who consider themselves brand loyal said they would be willing to switch brands if an AI agent suggested an alternative deemed more suitable for their needs.

Even more significant is the fact that, in the next twelve months, around 71% of consumers expect artificial intelligence to influence at least half of their spending in certain categories. Accenture also emphasizes that it is impossible to rigidly classify consumers, as willingness to delegate varies not only from person to person but also within the same product category. An individual might entrust AI with automatically reordering weekly groceries but firmly refuse to let an agent replace their weekend market visit.

Will we still be able to choose for ourselves?

In what might appear to be a rather dramatic scenario, the human dimension continues to retain a central role, albeit in a different and perhaps more conscious form. «Consumers delegate decisions they perceive as a hassle, even when complex, as long as the outcome does not have strong personal value,» notes Accenture. «Conversely, they retain control over choices tied to identity, relationships, or self-expression, even when those decisions are simple. Sometimes, the pleasure lies precisely in the process of searching and choosing.»

Perhaps this is where a glimmer of possibility opens up. Not because artificial intelligence is an enemy to be fought, but because it remains, at least for now, a tool to be gradually integrated into everyday life. And perhaps the prospect of its increasingly pervasive presence does not so much represent the end of our decision-making ability as it does the confirmation of a less comforting truth: we have never really been fully capable of making some of those choices.

The very act of being in the world, however natural it may seem, is often marked by uncertainty and difficulty. In this sense, AI does nothing other than what it was designed to do: present itself as a simplifying solution. The question, then, is not whether we will stop choosing, but how much we will be willing to give up the pleasure, and the responsibility, of doing so.