Fun, Learning or Work? What are most Australians using or planning to use ChatGPT for?

ChatGPT is going mobile. Just six months after its initial release for public use in November 2022, tech startup OpenAI has made the AI-powered chatbot available to iPhone users in over 45 countries (as of May 2023) with the launch of an iOS app. The company plans to add more countries and roll out an Android app soon.

With the arrival of ChatGPT to mobile devices, the ability to quickly find information, create plans and produce content on a wide range of topics – anywhere and anytime – will soon be available to anyone who owns a smartphone. 

But what proportion of Australians are even aware of ChatGPT? How many have used the AI chatbot – and for what purposes? What do Australians make of ChatGPT – both in respect of what it produces and its impact on the future of work in Australia?

In this three-part series, we unpack the findings of our national study on these questions.

• In Part 1, we explore who is aware of and who is using ChatGPT in Australia. We examine how this varies by generation, gender, education level and work status, as well as the demographic composition of ChatGPT’s regular users in Australia.
• In Part 2 – this article – we reveal the proportion of Australians who use ChatGPT for business, entertainment and educational purposes, and how likely different generations are to purchase products recommended by ChatGPT.
• In Part 3, we explore attitudes towards ChatGPT in Australia. Do consumers trust the AI chatbot’s accuracy and objectivity? And do they see ChatGPT as a helpful tool or a threat to their future employment?

Are Australians using ChatGPT for fun, education or business?

Latest research from YouGov Surveys: Serviced shows that, among Australians who have tried out ChatGPT so far, more than two-thirds (69%) have used it for entertainment purposes, making this the most popular use-case for the platform – at least so far.

Millennials are more likely than other generations to have done so: over three-quarters (77%) say they have used ChatGPT to amuse themselves. On the other hand, Gen X are less likely to have done so: less than three-fifths (57%) say the same.

Meanwhile, close to two-thirds (57%) of Australians who have interacted with ChatGPT have used it for educational purposes.

Millennials (59%) and Gen X (58%) are more likely to have done so than Gen Z where slightly over half (53%) say they have interacted with ChatGPT for their learning.

Finally, around half (51%) of Australians who have interacted with ChatGPT have used it for business/work purposes.

Millennials are again more likely than other generations to have done so: three-fifths (61%) say they have used ChatGPT professionally. Conversely, Gen Z are less likely to have done so: only a third (33%) say the same.

What kind of tasks have Australians used or intend to use ChatGPT for?

Over two-fifths (42%) of Australians who have interacted with ChatGPT have used it to complete work assignments (such as writing emails) and produce creative work (such as writing stories and social media posts) – making these the two most popular tasks on the platform so far – as well as the top two tasks that Australians aware of but have yet to try ChatGPT are keen on using the AI chatbot for.

Writing a resume (32%) is the next most common task, which around a third of users have tapped the AI chatbot for so far (or would use it for).

Interestingly, three in ten (30%) Australians who have interacted with ChatGPT so far have entrusted it to create passwords for their devices and online accounts, while a fifth (20%) of Australians who are aware of but have yet to try ChatGPT are keen to do the same. Additionally, a fifth (21%) have already roped in the AI chatbot in their quest for love – by asking it to write a dating profile.

How likely are Australians to buy a product recommended by ChatGPT?

Among Australians who have used ChatGPT so far, about three-quarters of Millennials (77%) and Gen X (75%) say they would purchase a product based on recommendations from ChatGPT.

In comparison, only three-fifths of Gen Z (59%) who have tried out ChatGPT so far say they would do so.

However, among Australians who are aware of but have yet to interact with the AI chatbot so far, less than two in five (38%) of Millennials and Gen Z would make a purchase based on ChatGPT recommendations, while just under a fifth (19%) of Gen X say the same.

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Methodology: YouGov Surveys: Serviced provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. This study was conducted online from 16-20 March 2023, with a national sample of 1,041 Australian residents, using a questionnaire designed by YouGov. Data figures have been weighted by age, gender and region to be representative of all adults residing in Australia (18 years or older) and reflect the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) population estimates. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.

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