Amid the deepened interest in and harnessing of artificial intelligence, new research from Appraise — a network for AI policy and advocacy professionals — reveals what MPs currently do and do not trust the technology being used for.

The research, which was conducted by YouGov for Appraise, and questioned a representative sample of over 100 members of Parliament, shows that MPs’ trust in artificial intelligence varies significantly depending on its application.

When it comes to distrust, more than two-thirds (67%) of MPs are uncomfortable with the proliferation of AI-generated content, while just under half (46%) are uncomfortable with AI making decisions on credit scores and insurance premiums.

Interestingly, in both of these instances, under a quarter of respondents (23%) said they either didn’t know their positions here or were not uncomfortable or comfortable with its usage in these applications.

A particular divide in MPs’ views is seen concerning AI making decisions for harmful content moderation: 38% of MPs are uncomfortable with it, while 30% are comfortable. Just under one-third (32%) said that, again, they didn’t know or weren’t on either side.

MPs broadly trust AI when it comes to the lower risk activity of filtering emails for spam or fraud, with more than half (57%) saying they’re comfortable with AI being used in this application. That said, 26% of respondents said they didn’t know or were neither comfortable or uncomfortable with it.

With a notable proportion of MPs responding “neither” or “don’t know,” it highlights some of the members of Parliaments’ current unsureness with AI, whether that’s due to a current lack of understanding, a lack of confidence in their opinion amid the technology’s rapid development, or various other reasons.

Relatedly, the research found that 44% of MPs feel more optimistic than pessimistic about AI, compared to the 27% who feel the other way. However, 29% said they’re unsure.

Further, just 9% of MPs say the impact of AI will be fairly distributed across society, compared to 63% who say it will not.

Earlier this year, in June, DIGIT reported on separate findings from Appraise which found that just 6% of MPs believe that existing regulators have the required skills and expertise to regulate AI.

Recommended reading

• Only 6% of MPs Confident in Existing UK Regulators to Govern AI
• Report: Majority of Businesses ‘Uncomfortable’ with Data Ethics Practices
• Who Do British People Trust the Most and Least With Their Data?

Despite MPs’ apparent mixed views on AI, artificial intelligence and machine learning are already being used across government departments, such as the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).

Last month, DIGIT reported on the news that the DWP is expanding its use of machine learning for identifying potential benefits fraud. The DWP has used a machine learning model to flag potentially fraudulent claims for University Credit (UC) advances since 2021.