Singapore – Singapore consumers are increasingly open to giving artificial intelligence (AI) greater responsibility, but remain concerned about how autonomous systems handle personal data, identity and decisions made on their behalf.
Research commissioned by Ping Identity and covering 11,000 consumers across 12 countries, including 1,000 in Singapore, found that consumers face a growing trust challenge as AI shifts from answering questions to taking actions on their behalf.
In Singapore, 81% of respondents said they worry an AI agent acting on their behalf could misrepresent their personality or personal values. Meanwhile, 62% said they are more concerned about having to constantly check an AI agent’s work than about the system making a mistake.
“Consumers are open to AI doing more, but they want a say in how far it can go,” said Darryl Jones, Vice President of Consumer Segment Strategy at Ping Identity.
“The more responsibility we give AI, the more important it becomes to be clear about what it can do, what it can access and who remains in control,” Jones continued.
The findings suggest consumers are most comfortable with AI handling medium-stakes tasks. Some 45% said recommendations such as comparing products or travel options, or helping to think through a decision, represent the highest level of responsibility they are comfortable giving AI.
At the same time, 10% said they are not comfortable giving AI any responsibility, while 32% said they would be likely to allow AI to independently make decisions on their behalf.
Access to personal accounts also remains subject to limits. About 41% of Singapore respondents said they would be likely to grant an AI agent read access to their primary email if doing so could save them five hours a week.
Consumers were also divided over the balance between transparency and performance. Some 41% said knowing whenever AI is being used is most important, while another 41% prioritised receiving the fastest and most accurate result regardless of whether AI use is disclosed.
Data protection remains a key factor in trust. Half of Singapore respondents said personal data used in an AI interaction must remain strictly confidential. Another 40% said guarantees that their data would not be used to train public AI models would make an AI tool or company more trustworthy, while 36% cited having a clear and easy way to escalate an issue to a real person.
Cybersecurity and identity risks were also prominent concerns. Some 40% of respondents cited increased cybersecurity risks to personal data and deepfake impersonation as identity-security concerns. AI-generated phishing and a lack of transparency around how AI stores or uses personal information were each cited by 38%.
Regulation is another area where consumers expect stronger safeguards, with 84% saying government regulation protecting identity data in AI applications is important.
“Singapore is moving quickly from AI experimentation to real-world adoption,” said Akkasha Sultan, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) at Ping Identity.
“The opportunity is significant, but adoption will depend on trust. Consumers need to know which AI agent is acting, what it can access and when a person remains accountable,” Sultan continued.
The findings come as Singapore continues to develop frameworks around the responsible deployment of AI agents, with emphasis on autonomy, human approval, accountability, cybersecurity, data protection and access controls.
The research indicates that while consumers are receptive to AI taking on more tasks, adoption is likely to depend on clearly defined permissions, transparency and mechanisms that ensure human oversight remains in place.
