An Australian community panel examining everyday experiences of artificial intelligence has found that people see “AI discernment” — the ability to decide when, how and whether to use AI — as more important than understanding how the technology works.
The Community Panel on AI brought together 25 participants aged 19 to 68, who shared accounts through workshops and written responses about how AI is entering their lives and what helps or hinders them in using it safely. The panel was hosted by researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADM+S) at Swinburne University of Technology, in collaboration with Telstra.
According to the panel’s findings, participants said AI is becoming difficult to avoid across work, education and day-to-day services, including websites using chatbot assistants and search engines providing AI-generated summaries. Two thirds reported feeling pressure to either use or avoid AI, and two thirds said they had disagreed with others about AI use.
Rather than calling for deeper technical understanding of AI models, participants emphasised critical thinking and judgement — particularly the ability to question or reject AI outputs — as key capabilities. The report describes this as “AI discernment”.
Concerns about reliability and deception featured strongly. Participants reported difficulties assessing AI-generated answers and summaries, and raised worries about AI-generated images, video and audio being used for impersonation and scams. Many said they were no longer confident they could tell whether media had been created or altered using AI, influencing how they use social media and how they treat online content and messages from unfamiliar sources.
The panel also found strong interest in learning opportunities, with almost all participants indicating they would attend public AI learning events and activities. However, nearly half said they were unsure where to find local opportunities, and many said they currently rely on informal sources such as friends, colleagues, social media, and AI tools themselves.
Participants called for greater accountability from policymakers and organisations developing and deploying AI, and said everyday voices should be included in decisions about AI. “The good news is that people in Australia are already approaching AI with care, curiosity and discernment. The clearest message from the panel is that people want a meaningful say and to be part of the conversation about how AI is introduced and managed”, said Dr Dominique Carlon, panel lead and ADM+S Research Fellow.
Professor Anthony McCosker, project lead and Chief Investigator at ADM+S, said: “Our job is not just to report on the deep ambivalence people have about AI right now, but to ensure those experiences help shape the policies and programs that can support people through this technological transformation.”
Telstra Chief Sustainability Officer (Acting) John Wilkinson said: “One of the most important insights from this research is that people are looking for practical support and trusted information as AI becomes more a part of everyday life.”
The community panel is the first stage of a broader national study, which will explore what “AI capability” looks like in everyday life and aims to inform policymakers, educators and community organisations on where support and resources are most needed. The work forms part of the Critical AI Capabilities Index project at ADM+S.
