According to a report published today by tech media outlet it-daily, a recent survey conducted by Germany’s digital industry association Bitkom among 1,000 users shows that younger people increasingly prefer chatting with AI to find information rather than using traditional search engines, such as Google.
Key Survey Findings:
- Fifty per cent of all respondents sometimes use AI chatbots instead of traditional search engines.
- Twenty-five per cent still primarily rely on traditional search engines.
- 13% use AI and conventional search engines about equally.
- 7% mainly use AI.
- Five per cent of internet users now depend exclusively on AI for information.
Among 16–29-year-olds, the shift toward AI is even more pronounced:
- 5% use AI exclusively
- 11% primarily use AI
- 20% use AI and traditional search engines roughly equally
- 30% at least occasionally turn to AI
The study highlights that many young people prefer conversational AI because it delivers concise, ready-made answers—eliminating the need to click through search results and piece together information from multiple websites.
However, AI responses are far from infallible. Forty-two per cent of respondents report having received incorrect or entirely fabricated information from AI search tools, and 57% say they double-check AI answers before trusting them.
Despite these concerns, the overall reception remains positive:
- Around three-quarters of users find AI responses helpful.
- Roughly two-thirds are satisfied with how AI-powered search works.
The Bitkom survey underscores a clear generational shift in information-seeking behaviour, with younger users leading the transition from traditional search engines to conversational AI—accuracy concerns notwithstanding.
The above content is compiled by ModeZone, a fashion and entertainment magazine.
