AI Around the World: Here's How Different Countries Are Using It

08.09.2023 - 12:14 / pcmag.com / Ai

The AI revolution has taken hold in different ways around the world, with some surprising differences in how each country is experimenting with it.

The term "AI" extends far beyond ChatGPT to a wide range of tools that can generate custom images, audio, and videos. A new study by Electronics Hub examines search data for 90 generative AI tools in these categories to identify the most popular ones as of July 2023.

The Philippines has the highest monthly search volume of any country for all AI tools combined. It also has the most people using AI for text generation, with 5,002 searches per 100,000 people. Singapore and Canada follow, with 2,547 and 1,760 searches for AI text generation, respectively. The US ranks much lower (17th), with 825 monthly searches per 100,000 people.

"The report shows that the Asia-Pacific region is the world's fastest-growing adopter of text-based technology," the study says. This includes Malaysia, which is number five for AI text generation.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, ChatGPT is the most-searched generative-AI tool in the most countries (65), including the US. Quillbot has the highest search volume overall (12 million global searches per month).

"For now, humankind’s primary use of AI seems to be completing everyday writing tasks: the most popular AI tools, Quillbot and ChatGPT, are respectively 10 and six times more popular than the most-searched image tool," the study says.

Quillbot is an "AI-powered paraphrasing tool," and could be a compelling tool for ChatGPT lovers to try. "Our product will improve your fluency while also ensuring you have the appropriate vocabulary, tone, and style for any occasion," Quillbot says. "Simply enter your text into the input box, and our AI will work with you to create the best paraphrase."

The study warns that mass use of AI text-generation tools could fill the internet with "great swaths" of AI-generated content. It cites a quote from Ross Anderson, professor of security engineering at the University of Cambridge: “Just as we’ve strewn the oceans with plastic trash and filled the atmosphere with carbon dioxide, so we’re about to fill the internet with blah.”

Fewer people around the world are using AI to create images than text. Israel ranks number one for AI image searches, with 305 per 100,000 people. "Content creators in the country marked 2023's Passover celebrations with realistic images portraying tales of ancient stories from the Exodus," the study says.

Singapore has the second highest number of people interested in AI image generation (281). It was also the second highest for text generation. As for the US, it ranks even lower for AI images than text, at 19th.

"We have found that the highest volume of image generation searches