When the state of use of generative AI was compared among the countries, Japan clearly emerged as a place where AI utilization is making slower progress. The percentage of respondents who use AI at least several times a month was strikingly high in China at 86.3%, and in the U.S. and Germany, this figure was close to 60%. Japan, on the other hand, was stuck at 34.9%, a visible and substantial difference from its peers in terms of AI adoption.

Likewise, the percentage of respondents using paid AI services was 15.5% in Japan, a very low level. In light of the figures for the U.S., Germany, and China (40.2%, 33.9%, and 66.0%, respectively), the scale of monetary investment in AI appears to be quite limited in Japan.
 
These results are partially a reflection of differences in these respective countries’ systems and market environments. The Chinese market, for example, is influenced by the functional constraints of the AI services offered by domestic companies and, in effect, often presupposes the use of paid services. Japan, in contrast, has many services that are available for free, and conditions there indicate that “trying it first” does not always lead to ongoing use or to the use of paid services. 

The survey categorized consumers into multiple types along the axes of trust in AI and state of AI utilization. In this quadrant model, what stands out about Japan is the prevalence of consumers who say they trust AI but do not use it. This “Trust × No Use” quadrant represents the most common position in Japan. Despite expectations for and interest in AI, this group of people has not ventured into actual use, and has instead adopted a “wait and see” stance.


On the other hand, in the U.S. and Germany, there were a certain number of people who used AI from a pragmatic or utilitarian perspective despite not necessarily having high trust in it. Likewise, in China, national strategy and the spread of platforms have spurred deep integration of AI into daily life and industrial activities, suggesting that people there are no longer in the stage of deciding “to use or not to use.”

Comparison of the four countries thus reveals differences in how each is handling the relationship between “trust” and “use.” More specifically, the U.S. and Germany have moved ahead with utilization despite not necessarily having high trust, while in China, AI use has taken hold as a part of social infrastructure. Conversely, Japan seems to be characterized by a trust in AI that is not linked to use of the technology.

The picture that emerges from these differences shows that Japanese consumers are cautious about AI but not necessarily negative about it. In fact, conditions appear to suggest that they have expectations for the technology, but no impetus to use it or no sense of necessity about its use. 

Even more interesting are the results of analysis on consumer receptiveness to an AI-driven future. Japanese consumers are relatively open-minded about any AI utilization that will improve lifestyle convenience, yet they exhibit a cautious attitude toward areas such as making purchases in virtual spaces or chatting with AI. In other words, the apparent trend is one that emphasizes whether or not AI is helpful, but that leans toward skepticism in areas with implications for human relationships or the experience of reality.

In addition to these overall trends, the survey examined whether there were differences in receptiveness depending on the state of use of AI. Consumers were classified according to frequency of AI use, and receptiveness to AI was compared across groups.

The results showed that for functions that work as extensions of everyday life, such as proxy buying of everyday items or advanced information gathering, the groups most apt to use AI on a day-to-day basis were also the most receptive in their attitudes toward it. This indicates that AI is most likely to be accepted in areas that allow consumers to imagine specific conveniences, rather than abstract visions of the future. 

The results also confirm that people who use AI more frequently tend to be more receptive to an AI-driven future. This means that positive evaluations of AI are being formed through the actual experience of using it – or, put differently, that there is a cyclical pattern where use leads to deeper understanding, which in turn leads to greater receptiveness. 

In light of the analysis thus far, the obstacle to AI expansion in Japan appears to be not a lack of trust, but a lack of sufficient impetus for use.

Japanese consumers already have certain expectations about what AI will do for them. Therefore, the essential question is how to create opportunities for people to begin using AI naturally in everyday life.

Achieving this goal will demand not only easy-to-understand applications like work streamlining and information searches, but service designs that are tailored to individual life. For example, one of the keys will be utilization in areas that directly improve quality of life, such as purchasing support, healthcare, and learning support.   

Also important is the question of how to provide, through ingenuity in UIs and experiential design, the initial experience of “I tried it, and it turned out to be helpful.” It appears likely that this first step will determine whether use continues and acceptance grows thereafter. 

This survey shows that Japan is not simply a country with lagging AI utilization. Rather, Japan can be understood as a rich and untapped market, where a foundation of trust has already been built but steps toward utilization are not being taken.

This means that a change in perspective reveals massive potential, because there are hidden possibilities for Japan’s AI utilization to be expanded in no time, simply through the creation of appropriate impetuses for use. 

Looking ahead, the vital point will be not the sophisticated functions of AI in themselves, but the question of how to provide experiences that enable consumers to begin using AI naturally. The accumulation of small successful experiences at the day-to-day level will further deepen understanding and trust, leading to growth in use.  

What awaits beyond that transformation is more than a simple efficiency enhancement; it is a change in the very character of life and of work. As AI takes over routine operations and information processing that humans cannot handle, people will be able to spend more of their time dealing with exceptional situations and making fundamental judgments.

This, in turn, will bring about a change in values with regard to employment, as well as a further increase in the importance of the judgment and creativity that only humans can exercise, relationship-building with other people, and other similar factors. In addition, from a customer service perspective, functions such as information provision and procedures will be entrusted to AI, with the role of humans shifting to areas of higher added value. Japan today stands at the cusp of a transition toward these changes.