AI use on the rise, Dutch more concerned about screen time: Digital Media Survey

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly part of the digital media landscape in the Netherlands, though many Dutch have concerns about the technology, research agency GfK found in its annual Trends in Digital Media survey. It also found that Netherlands residents were more worried about the consequences of screen time last year than in 2022 but also used online platforms more. However, they are increasingly ditching X because they don’t trust the platform.

Two-thirds of the Dutch population aged 13 and over are familiar with AI and know what they can do with it. A third, mostly young people, have used AI platforms like ChatGPT. People mainly use AI platforms to generate or improve texts and, to a lesser extent, to generate images and sound. Searching for information and inspiration are also popular uses of AI.

Despite the fact that AI is cautiously establishing itself in the Dutch digital media landscape, many Netherlands residents have concerns about the rise of the technology and its develpment in the future. A frequently mentioned concern is an increase in disinformation. People also don’t like that they sometimes can’t tell whether a person or AI created something.

The average use of online platforms increased among Netherlands residents last year. As did concerns about the negative consequences of screen time. “The majority think that technology makes life easier, but half would still like to have less technology in their lives,” GfK said. People in the age group 18 to 49 are most concerned about the negative consequences of their screen time on their health and social behavior and are most likely to want to cut down.

Netherlands residents attach increasing importance to deciding what they consume and when. On-demand television, music streaming, and listening to podcasts are still on the rise. “Although the development is slower than in 2022, the trend is still visible,” GfK said.

While traditional media like television and radio are losing viewers to streaming services, they still enjoy the most trust when it comes to handling people’s data. Social media has the least confidence in that respect. “If we look at confidence in content, X and TikTok in particular score low, with X having decreased compared to 2022,” the agency said. “The transition from Twitter to X has not done the platform any good.”