UAE consumers find chatbots most useful in buying mobile phones online

With the AI market on track to reach the USD 500 billion mark by 2024, it is no surprise that AI and ML (machine learning) continue to become an integral part of business systems worldwide.

A YouGov survey conducted across 18 international markets finds that chatbots are proving to be a valuable resource for customers seeking assistance while shopping online for various products and services, but three in ten global consumers do not consider them useful in this regard.

In the UAE, less than one in ten (8%) consumers do not find chatbots useful, highlighting the popularity of AI technology in the country.

From the various listed options, chatbots appear to be most useful in online shopping for mobiles and electronics, with one in six consumers across the globe saying this (16% each). In the UAE, this number increases to three in ten (30%) for mobiles and one in four (26%) for electronics- making them the top two categories where consumers think using a customer service chatbot can be useful.

A quarter also considers chatbots useful when buying air travel and hotel services online (26%)- the highest of all markets across the globe.

While only 12% of global consumers think chatbots are helpful in buying groceries online, this number doubles (24%) among UAE consumers. Similarly, buying clothes/ shoes (24% UAE consumers vs 14% global consumers), take-out food (23% vs 12%), and financial products (20% vs 12%) online via chatbots is more useful to UAE adults than global consumers.

Around a fifth of UAE consumers think chatbot assistance is useful in buying medicines (19%), streaming subscriptions (19%), and cars/ vehicles (19%) online. An equal but lesser proportion of consumers believe in its usefulness when shopping online for out-of-home entertainment services and cosmetics (17% each).

Comparatively, the area where consumers think chatbots are least helpful is when buying video games online, but this is still more useful to residents in UAE than those across the globe (15% vs 10%).

Methodology: YouGov Surveys: Serviced provide quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. The data is based on surveys of adults aged 18+ years in 18 markets with sample sizes varying between 431 and 1,572 for each market. UAE data is based on a nationally representative sample of 18+ adults with a sample size of 1014 respondents. All surveys were conducted online in December 2022. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.