AI users are young and highly educated

A text, a plan of action, a simple illustration... It’s tempting to ask programmes like ChatGPT or Copilot to help us with such tasks. In 2024, 61 percent of highly-educated people up to the age of 25 did it, reports Statistics Netherlands.

The statistics agency has honoured a request to share more figures about age, education level and AI use. The main takeaway: the use of generative AI is not restricted to the youngest generation. Out of all the highly-educated people up to the age of 35, almost fifty percent have used artificial intelligence on at least one occasion. Considerable percentages also occur among other age groups. 

The exact activity isn’t specified. What’s more, the figures don’t distinguish between heavy and sporadic use. But one thing is clear: the use of these kinds of tools is widespread, particularly among young people.

Criticism
Ever since the arrival of ChatGPT, critics have worried about the impact on education and research. In a telling interview with HOP, the program itself also said that it can lead to plagiarism. 

News items to that effect have indeed been appearing regularly since then. Last month, a teacher wrote on X that her students are even using ChatGPT for a simple writing assignment: "Briefly introduce yourself and say what you're hoping to get out of this class."

Last year, Internet pioneer Marleen Stikker argued that the education sector should file a claim for damages from tech companies that unscrupulously distribute AI. “All the work that we carry out in the education and research sectors is affected. The costs are huge.”