Perception of Artificial Intelligence by Customers of Science Centers (Percepcja sztucznej inteligencji przez klientow centrów nauki)

Purpose: The aim of the article is an attempt to answer the question of customers’ knowledge on AI and its application in marketing. Design/methodology/approach: In-depth interviews with 203 people (residents of Lodzkie and Mazowieckie voivodships) who visited a science center at least once were conducted in 2019. In the sampling, the snowball effect was used. The problems concerning artificial intelligence were a part of bigger research (other matters were focused on omnichannel environment and wearables). Findings: The research results showed that respondents understand the term “artificial intelligence” (AI) in a highly intuitive manner, which often remains in conflict with the classical meaning of the term. The perception of scope and usage of AI is based mainly on stereotypes and representations sourced in mass media. The main advantages of AI noticed by respondents were time savings and offers better adjusted to their needs, while the major disadvantages were the limitation of choice in terms of preferred products (for example, during online shopping) and threats of data leaks. Respondents were supporters of usage of AI in marketing in the scope limited by law. Research limitations/implications: The usage of non-probabilistic sampling, a relatively small sample and the usage of qualitative analysis methods were major limitations of the conducted research. As the research resorted only to the people with previous experiences with science centers’ offer, the possibility to generalize research results was restricted (due to the specific profile of those entities’ customers). Originality/value: The presented paper is a part of the research area related to the usage of new technologies in cultural institutions, especially science centers’ marketing activities. The research was aimed at diagnosing how respondents understand the term “artificial intelligence” and what their attitude towards the usage of AI in marketing is. The cognitive value of the paper might also be seen in the focus on a relatively narrow and homogenous group of respondents (science centers’ customers). The reason is relatively low popularity of research in that group and their bigger knowledge and technology acceptance (as compared to the general public).