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A new study commissioned by Zoom revealed the rise of a new class of “AI natives” — individuals aged 18 to 24 who have grown up with AI* and actively use it today — in Asia Pacific (APAC) and India. India’s AI natives in particular stand out for their optimism and higher demands for quality, integration, and collaboration, reflecting how they see AI as a driver of productivity rather than a threat.
In India, 74% of AI natives believe it is important for employers to provide access to AI tools to equip employees for the AI digital world. This underscores how expectations around workplace AI are now evolving across the board, extending beyond the AI-native early adopters.
At the same time, 66% of India’s AI natives highlight data privacy as a top concern, while more than half (52%) of AI natives are concerned about the accuracy of their AI tools at work. This reflects a growing demand for AI that is not only precise but also secure and trusted among the AI natives in India.
Similarly, in customer interactions, over half (52%) of Indian AI natives highlight concerns around generic and unhelpful responses delivered by AI — the lowest in APAC after Taiwan (47%).
It is also clear that human empathy and reassurance remain key to winning over India’s AI natives. Even though 68% of AI natives in India expect AI to be a faster, more efficient way of getting their issues resolved in the future, 74% say they still want the option to escalate to a human agent despite their enthusiasm for AI in delivering better service. The preference for having a human support option is also true for non-AI native as well (80%). This underscores the need to design experiences where AI and human agents work collaboratively, delivering the speed and efficiency of automation without losing the empathy and trust that only human interaction can provide.
“AI natives in India are entering the workforce and marketplace with heightened expectations for how AI should power their everyday experiences, both as customers and employees. They see AI as a driver of productivity and collaboration, but they are equally clear about the need for accuracy, data privacy and security, as well as the reassurance of human connection when it matters most,” said Sameer Raje, General Manager and Head, India & SAARC Region at Zoom.
In India, both AI natives and non-AI natives are the most optimistic about AI in the workplace overall, with 77% describing themselves as either “very positive” or “somewhat positive” about AI — the highest across the APAC region, just ahead of Indonesia (76%) and above the APAC average of 66%. This underlines India’s digital-first economy and the readiness of its young workforce to embrace emerging AI-powered technologies.
In fact, India’s AI natives are already experiencing tangible workplace benefits from AI, and to a greater extent compared to their non-AI native counterparts.
71% say AI helps with writing and editing tasks, such as drafting emails and reports, compared to 64% of non-AI natives.
Similarly, 69% of AI natives use AI to improve data analysis and reporting, versus 63% of non-AI natives.
This gap highlights how AI natives in India see AI as less of a threat and more as a productivity partner, a view reinforced by their perspective around job displacement. Only 39% of AI natives in India worry about job loss compared to close to half (46%) of non-AI natives.
Overall, both India’s AI and non-AI natives generally perceive AI as an effective workplace partner. More than half (53%) of all respondents report that AI tools help them be extremely productive in their roles. When it comes to collaboration, India’s AI natives are well above the APAC average — 42% of AI natives in India say AI tools greatly contribute to their ability to collaborate effectively with colleagues, second only to Korea’s AI natives (45%). Together, these results highlight that while confidence in AI is strong, expectations by AI natives continue to rise, especially in terms of reliability and security.
Although organisations in India have been able to meet these expectations, with 86% of both India’s AI natives and non-AI natives saying that they are “satisfied” or “extremely satisfied” with the AI tools provided by their employers at work. This is higher than the APAC average (75%), prompting business leaders across the region to consider how they can evolve their technology stack to cater to a more discerning AI-native population.
As customers, India’s AI natives are looking for faster, smarter, and more personalised AI-driven experiences. For instance, India’s AI natives (68%) are optimistic that AI can result in faster and more efficient service, such as reduced wait times and getting instant responses to queries.
In the future, AI natives in India also want smarter self-service options like AI chatbots that can resolve complex queries (68% vs. 60% of non-AI natives), and more personalised interactions such as tailored recommendations and adaptive support with the evolution of AI (63% vs. 58% of non-AI natives).
Yet, more than half (52%) of AI natives in India flagged AI responses as “too generic or unhelpful”, underscoring the quality of AI-generated resolutions as an important concern. This shows that while they are generally positive about AI, relevance and precision remain critical to winning their trust as consumers.
For organisations, this means that simply offering a chatbot or basic automation is no longer enough. True success will come from embedding AI more deeply and seamlessly into customer interactions, ensuring experiences feel personalised and integrated rather than bolted on.
“For organisations, the signal is unequivocal: success in the AI era will depend on how well they embed AI thoughtfully across customer and employee journeys. This will enable them to build an AI-plus-human partnership that can balance efficiency with empathy, building long-term trust with this new class of consumers and employees,” added Raje.
