Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact

About this research

This study is Pew Research Center’s latest effort to explore how Americans use and view artificial intelligence (AI). The study also dives into who uses chatbots and has smart home devices with AI features. It also explores what impact people think AI will have on society and on them, personally.

Why did we do this?

The Center conducts research to inform the public, journalists and decision-makers. Tracking the rise of AI in society has been a key priority for us over the years. It’s important to understand how people use AI in their lives and how they feel these tools will impact themselves and society.

Learn more about Pew Research Center.

How did we do this?

We surveyed 5,119 U.S. adults from Feb. 17 to 23, 2026. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP). The survey represents the views of the full U.S. adult population.

Here are the questions used for this report, the topline and the survey methodology.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic concept – it’s transforming everything from medicine to work to entertainment.

At the same time, Americans are using chatbots more than ever before and some are bringing smart devices into their households, according to a new Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults.

The key takeaways:

• About half of U.S. adults now report using AI chatbots, up substantially from the summer of 2024.¹ This includes roughly one-in-four who use these tools on daily basis.
• Some people are bringing AI into their homes. About a third of Americans say they have a smart speaker, and smaller shares have a doorbell or thermostat with AI features.
• But Americans —including younger adults— are deeply skeptical of AI. More adults predict that AI will have a negative rather than positive impact on them and on society. And majorities think AI is advancing too quickly and will put their personal information at risk.

Americans are using these tools in many parts of their daily lives. Searching for information and work-related tasks are the most common uses:

• About four-in-ten U.S. adults say they use chatbots for information searching.²
• 38% of employed adults report using chatbots for tasks at work.

A quarter or less mention using these tools for fun, creating and editing images or videos, medical advice, and diet and fitness information.

And 13% say they use chatbots for getting news, according to our survey of 5,119 U.S. adults conducted Feb. 17-23, 2026.

Debates continue about using this technology for more personal reasons, such as emotional advice and companionship. In this survey, one-in-ten report using chatbots for emotional support and a smaller share say they do so for companionship.

Frequency of chatbot use

About a quarter of Americans report using chatbots daily. This includes 12% who say they do so several times a day and 4% who use these tools almost constantly.

Another quarter report using chatbots several times a week or less, and about half of adults do not use chatbots at all.

Which chatbots Americans use 

In addition to overall chatbot use, we asked about which specific brands adults use. Since ChatGPT’s public debut in 2022, several other chatbots have entered the market.

That said, ChatGPT still dominates and its reach is growing. A little under half of U.S. adults (44%) now report using the chatbot, up from 34% last year. This is also more than double the share when we first asked this question in 2023.³

Fewer people report using the other chatbots we asked about:

• The second-most-used platform is Gemini, which about a quarter of adults report using.
• This is followed by Copilot and Meta AI.
• And about one-in-ten or fewer say they use Grok, Claude or Character.ai.

Chatbot use varies a lot by age. Adults under 50 are about twice as likely as those ages 50 and older to report using ChatGPT (57% vs. 28%). For an in-depth look at age differences, read “How opinions and use of AI differ by age.”

Impact on productivity, creativity and relationships

As use of chatbots rises, broader debates have surfaced about its impact on efficiency, creativity and personal connections.

We found that Americans are more likely to say chatbots help rather than hurt their productivity and how informed they are. Three-in-ten U.S. adults say using chatbots helps how productive they are. And a similar share say chatbots help keep them informed.

Few (5% each) say chatbots hurt them in either way.

Americans also are more likely to see chatbots helping than hurting their creativity. About one-in-five say these tools help them in this way, compared with 11% who say chatbots hurt their creativity.

Few say chatbots impact their happiness or relationships. Americans most commonly say chatbots neither help nor hurt in these areas.

Americans’ experiences with AI-enabled smart devices

Chatbots are not the only way AI shows up in people’s lives. From Alexa to an Apple watch, AI is embedded into tools that people use daily.

These devices offer convenience and new ways to interact with technology. But this technology also raises concerns about surveillance and child safety.

Smartwatches

From tracking daily step counts to keeping up with text messages, some Americans are turning to smartwatches.

About four-in-ten U.S. adults say they have a smartwatch, while a majority report that this is something they don’t have.

Smart home devices

Many smart devices rely on AI to play music, get news, help with household chores and more. We asked Americans if they have devices in their homes that use AI.

About a third report having a smart speaker, such as Amazon Echo or Apple Homepod.

Other devices are less common but still notable. About one-in-five have a smart doorbell that uses AI, like a Ring video doorbell.

And roughly one-in-ten each say they have robot vacuums or smart thermostats that have AI features.⁴

For a demographic breakdown of people who have smart devices, go to the Appendix.

AI search summaries

AI is also changing the way people get and consume information. One of these ways is through AI summaries at the top of search engine results.

Our survey shows that six-in-ten U.S. adults say they read AI search engine summaries. Three-in-ten say they do not.

Another 10% are not sure if they’ve done so.

How Americans view AI’s impact

New technology is often met with a degree of curiosity as well as skepticism. As more Americans incorporate AI into their lives, there are broad concerns about its impact, its speed and whether the government can properly regulate it.

In fact, more Americans predict AI will be bad rather than good for society. Four-in-ten U.S. adults say AI will have a negative impact on society over the next 20 years. Far fewer believe its impact will be positive.

Adults’ views about AI’s potential impact on their own lives also tilt negative, though less dramatically. While 31% expect AI to have a negative effect on them personally over the next two decades, about a quarter believe it will have a positive impact.

Still, about three-in-ten believe AI will have an equally positive and negative effect on society and on them. And roughly one-in-ten or more say they are unsure about either impact.

Differences by age

While younger Americans stand out for their use of AI, they are not more favorable about it.

Adults under age 30 are more likely to say AI will have a negative effect on society and on them personally than those 30 and older. 

Learn more about: How opinions and use of AI differ by age.

And jump to “The gender gap in AI” to read how men and women differ on these questions.

Is AI moving too fast?

Corporate investment in AI has increased significantly over the past couple of years. Some have noted how fast these tools are evolving. But others worry the United States may fall behind in the AI race.

We asked the public if they thought AI was advancing too quickly, too slowly or at the right pace. Here’s what they said:

Americans largely think AI is moving too fast. About two-thirds say this.Only 2% say it’s advancing too slowly.

About one-in-five think this technology is advancing at about the right pace. A roughly similar share say they’re not sure.

AI and data security

Americans have long been concerned about the safety of their personal data. This survey finds that Americans overwhelmingly believe AI will make these issues worse.

In fact, roughly seven-in-ten predict AI will make their personal information less secure. Just 3% say it will lead to their information being more secure.

Additionally, one-in-ten say it will not make much of a difference and 16% are unsure.

Government regulation and corporate responsibility

These broad concerns extend to views of AI regulation and development. Majorities aren’t confident that the government is addressing AI effectively or that companies are developing it responsibly. And for the government, these concerns are ticking up.

• 67% of Americans have little to no confidence in the U.S. government to regulate AI effectively. This is slightly up from 62% in 2024, when we last asked this question.
• When it comes to trusting the businesses who develop AI, about six-in-ten adults are not confident in U.S. companies to develop and use these tools responsibly.

Differences by party

This skepticism is common in both parties. But Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say they aren’t confident in the U.S. government to regulate AI effectively (74% vs. 61%). (Both groups include independents who lean toward the respective party.)

This represents a shift from previous years. The share of Republicans who say they are not confident in government regulation of AI has dropped from 70% in 2024 to 61% today.

Democrats have moved in the opposite direction, with their lack of confidence rising 20 percentage points during this span.

There are also partisan differences in views of businesses developing AI responsibly. A larger share of Democrats than Republicans say they are not confident in U.S. companies to develop AI responsibly (65% vs. 53%). There were no meaningful partisan differences two years ago.