26% “AI, 사람 돌봄 대신할 수 있어” 54% “돌봄 돕는 보조 역할로 충분”

South Korea has entered a super-aged society, with more than 20% of its population aged 65 or older last year. According to national data projections, this trend will continue, with the 65-and-older demographic surpassing 30% by 2036. There are many individuals requiring care, yet the number of caregivers is dwindling. This growing interest in "care AI" is the reason behind it.

The "Senior AI Perception Survey" conducted by Haneul explored the public's thoughts on AI caregiving versus human caregiving. The survey revealed that 54.2% believed AI caregiving should serve as a supplementary role, while 26.4% thought AI could handle a significant portion of caregiving. "Care should primarily be provided by humans" followed at 13.8%, and 2.4% stated they were unwilling to accept AI caregiving.

While there were differences in perception between genders, 80.6% acknowledged the possibility of AI caregiving. Gender played a role in how people viewed AI caregiving, with 34.1% of men and 19.1% of women believing AI could replace human caregivers. However, 9.5% of men and 18% of women believed humans should primarily provide care.

Sung Wonyeong, the director of the National Rehabilitation Institute for Rehabilitation Robots, noted that men were more interested in AI technologies but still preferred humans, especially in the elderly population, due to their active social relationships. Additionally, women who were 60-74 years old and caring for both their elderly parents and young children experienced dual caregiving roles, a factor that influenced the survey results.

Overall, the "interactive AI acceptance" group was 2 to 3 times more likely to accept AI as a potential replacement for human caregivers compared to the non-accepting group, but both groups still believed that humans should remain central to caregiving.