The digital world is in a constant state of flux and has been so since its nascent years, with new technologies and products being introduced regularly. Yet, groundbreaking innovations come along just once in a while and earth-shattering is what AI is. The massive impact of artificial intelligence on the lives of people all across the world, particularly Gen Z made the CEO of Soul, Zhang Lu initiate a survey to decode the perceptions that youngsters harbor about AI and related technologies like AIGC, and this threw up some surprising results.
AI-generated content is a technological innovation that allows users to create all types of content, including music, stories, marketing copy, images, videos, and more with just a simple prompt. When it comes to technology that almost seems like magic, artificial intelligence is among the top contenders. What’s more, AIGC is even capable of participating in human-like interactions with users. This is head and shoulder above the monotonous, incoherent blabber which was the best of what older interactive programs could offer.
So, it would not be far-fetched to state that as far as technological innovations go, AIGC packs in the same punch as operating systems. In other words, it’s a transformative technology that has the power to radically change the way in which people, work and live. Come to think of it, in the case of AIGC, the equation also includes the way in which people interact with machines and how they socialize in general.
The sheer power that AIGC brings to the table is what has led users to view the technology with both awe and caution. And that is what led Soul Zhang Lu to get her team to launch a survey to understand just how the social platform’s young users feel about AIGC, how they use it, and to what extent they have engaged with it.
Launched in late May, the survey was conducted by Just So Soul, the research division of Soul Zhang Lu’s team. The questionnaire received responses from over 3400 people. Since over 80% of Soul App’s monthly active user base comprises Zoomers, the results of the survey can be taken as an accurate indication of how the younger generation is handling the AI revolution.
In fact, over 80% of those surveyed were Gen Z’ers and nearly all these respondents had some experience of using AIGC products. The post-00 cohort was found to have the most information about AIGC products but save for 30%, all others admitted to knowing little about what AIGC is actually all about and how exactly it works.
According to the definition offered by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, AIGC is a set of technologies based on intelligent algorithms that are capable of content generation. So, in essence, AIGC is a novel approach to content production and it can even be called a type of content that is created entirely by a computer program with minimum inputs from human users.
Based on large language models (LLMs) that can harness the power of big data, AIGC is able to not just understand the meaning of human communication beyond the simple basics but can also use the vast amounts of data it has been trained on to respond to user interactions in a coherent and human way. It is also capable of creating unique content based on these interactions.
In fact, such are the creative abilities of AIGC that functions and products based on the technology have become ubiquitous in academic as well as professional environments, and that is not all. These products and functions have also steadily permeated into people’s everyday lives. For instance, AIGC products make quick work of generating meeting minutes, a typically boring yet required corporate chore and they just as easily whip up alluring marketing copies or offer in-depth explanations of mind-boggling math concepts.
The best part is that AIGC products can do all of this while holding their own in a lively conversation with a human user. They can infuse just the right amount of humor and even empathy into the interaction, making the user feel that the banter is actually being carried out between two people instead of a human and a computer program.
Given all of this, it comes as no surprise that less than 5% of the respondents who took the survey initiated by Soul Zhang Lu admitted to never having used an AIGC application. Of those surveyed, almost 29% reported trying AIGC products and learning about the technology, while 6% acknowledged their proficiency in using the technology. Around 20% of the young respondents of the survey said that they used AIGC tools on a day-to-day basis.
These digital natives also clarified that for young users the technology held potential in multiple arenas. For instance, over 14% stated that AIGC was an income generator for them while 43% said that they intended to use AIGC to make money and help them in their entrepreneurial journey.
The Soul Zhang Lu launched survey also made some striking revelations in terms of the social uses of AIGC products. For starters, the responses to the questionnaire revealed that a whopping 60% of youngsters had already used social products powered by AIGC while more than 30% were excited about being friends with an AIGC-generated virtual companion.
So, the moral of the story is that as far as Gen Z is concerned, AIGC is a god sent capable of enriching both their personal and professional lives. That said, the survey from Soul Zhang Lu’s team did reveal that youngsters also harbor some concerns about the technology. But, the overall environment is that of positivity and acceptance.
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