Source : Perth Now news
More than half of Australians would be comfortable letting an AI bot apply for a loan or a credit card on their behalf, a new survey finds.
Business data company Experian, which has a credit card comparison app on ChatGPT, commissioned a survey that found the majority of Aussies were comfortable with AI bots handling their financial information.
The survey polled 481 Australians who had applied for credit in the past 12 months, and the company said “the research reflects the views of credit-active, digitally literate consumers and does not represent all Australian adults”.
The survey found 59 per cent of people were comfortable with an AI agent applying for a loan or a credit card on their behalf, with varying caveats including “full autonomy”, only after approvals, or if certain rules are met.
But 42 per cent are not comfortable with AI making any moves beyond recommendations.
Nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) would be comfortable handing over bank statements and credit scores to a large language model.
Just more than four-in-five people are happy for an AI bot to find them the best loan offer, and 77 per cent are comfortable with the bot negotiating a better deal for them.
Experian commissioned Forrester Consulting to run the survey, which was conducted in July.
Experian Australia and NZ chief executive Andrew Black said the results showed people were looking to save time and make comparisons.
“Banks and lenders now need to give consumers confidence that their information will be protected and that they will remain in control of important decisions,” he said.
“As AI agents begin to support more parts of the loan application process, banks and lenders will need clear methods to confirm that an agent has permission to act for a customer.”
Australians surveyed also voiced clear hesitation about handing over their financial information. The survey found 80 per cent of people “identify the risk of personal data being accessed or misused as a leading concern about using an AI agent”.
Three-quarters of people would feel more comfortable using an AI agent connected to a financial provider they already trust.
The survey polled 6247 people across 13 Asia-Pacific, European, Middle Eastern, and African countries; Australia, China, Denmark, Germany, India, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Africa, Spain and Turkey.
Australia polled exactly on the average for large language model trust.
Compared with New Zealand, Aussies are more trusting of AI agents. Italians are the least keen.
China polled highest for allowing a bot full autonomy when applying for credit or a loan – 10 per cent – compared with 3 per cent of Australians.
