Ranked: The Top Factors That Build AI Trust
Key Takeaways
- Capability is the biggest driving factor of AI trust across over 500 studies.
- Human-like traits (anthropomorphism) are the second-biggest precursor to people trusting AI.
AI is evolving faster than most teams can keep up. It’s often inaccurate, occasionally unpredictable, and forces businesses to rethink workflows they’ve trusted for years. In this environment, AI trust isn’t automatic. It has to be earned.
This graphic pulls back the curtain on what really makes people believe in AI—and why performance matters more than polish. It’s a preview of the brand-new executive guide from Terzo and Visual Capitalist, AI’s Illusion of Truth: The Data Behind AI Errors.
The Most Common Drivers of AI Trust
Researchers reviewed over 500 studies to find the most commonly cited drivers of people’s trust in AI. At the top of the list is capability, an AI system’s ability to perform tasks accurately and effectively.
This makes intuitive sense. When an AI model repeatedly hallucinates or gives unreliable output, teams quickly lose trust. In a world where overconfidence and illusions of accuracy are common, competent AI matters most.
| Factor | Number of Times Reported as Precursor to Human Trust in AI |
|---|---|
| Capability | 92 |
| Anthropomorphism* | 67 |
| Individual Factors | 47 |
| Explainability | 41 |
| Privacy Risk | 37 |
*Anthropomorphism is attributing human characteristics to AI. Source: AI & Society, based on a systematic review of 562 studies of human trust in AI.
The second most common factor is giving AI human-like traits (anthropomorphism). For example, this can include things like the AI model referring to itself as “I,” using a conversational tone, or appearing friendly.
Beyond this, individual factors like age, gender, and education level play a large role.
People are also more likely to have confidence in AI if they understand the logic behind AI decisions (explainability) and if they feel there is a low privacy risk.
How Business Leaders Can Build Trust
To move past illusions of confidence and toward dependable results, teams need to invest in AI that is competent and clear. While human-like traits can help ease adoption, they shouldn’t be a substitute for strong performance.