A good half of all AI users in Germany at least sometimes asks Chatgpt & Co. as a buying guide and no longer a search engine. This is the result of a study by the Norstat market research institute on behalf of the Verdane, a leading European investment company.
Three percent are proven AI fans and always use AI tools instead of search engines in online shopping. 14 percent say they mostly use artificial intelligence. And 35 percent sometimes do this. The “FAZ digital economy” was first reported on the study.
A total of 7,282 people from Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland took part in the survey in June between the ages of 18 and 60.
The highest AI share has the online purchase of travel with 33 percent. This is followed by consumer electronics (22 percent), craftsman products and hobby needs (20 percent) as well as software or digital subscriptions (19 percent). The AI share of the AI in fashion and clothing (13 percent), cosmetics (12 percent) and real estate (7 percent) is comparatively low.
AI in the job more and more in Germany
In a European comparison, people in Germany are significantly below the average when using AI when shopping. In the case of professional use, however, they are at the forefront: Half of all respondents use AI tools daily or several times a week for the job. The dynamic is particularly noteworthy: Around half of the German respondents stated that Ki used AI in the professional environment “much more” in the past six months.
Among the AI tools, Chatgpt is a large distance from the competition. 86 percent of AI users regularly use the Chatbot from Openai. Google’s Gemini (26 percent regular users) and Microsoft Copilot (20 percent) follow at a clear distance. The Chinese Ki-Bot Deepseek, which was heavily discussed in AI specialist circles and data protectionists, does not play a role in consumers.
Manufacturers and dealers have to rethink
The changes in the search behavior of consumers not only provide providers of search engines such as Google with a major challenge. The manufacturers and dealers also have to adapt to further ensure their visibility in the AI world. “In the past ten years it has been a proven growth formula for consumer goods brands to buy visibility. Pay-per-click campaigns on Google and Facebook were well suited to lead customers to their own website. Today, this concept is becoming increasingly important,” said Daniel Ahlstand, partner of the Norwegian investment company Verdane of the “FAZ”.
Large voice models changed the way consumers find information and products online. “You avoid the traditional search and advertising director. This change has profound effects on the growth strategies,” said Ahlstand.