Understanding How Our Readers Feel About AI

I have been on the record (and even have a tag for it)  that we need to "Just Say No to AI." I have written about this in response to a variety of RA related situations. 

Last week, Book Insights published their first survey gathering the thoughts of book buyers on the use of AI in books.

But before I break down the survey, I need to let you all know a little but more about Book Insights (the source of this info). From their About page:

Who buys books in the US? Nobody has asked properly in a decade. We're asking now.

bookinsights.ai is running Consumer Compass — the first comprehensive study of the US book buyer since before BookTok, Romantasy, and the rise of audio and AI. In field now, with results in November 2026. Alongside that, I work with publishers directly on getting more from the data they already have.

Consumer Compass: A syndicated study of 5,000 US book buyers. Who they are, how they find books, where they buy and more.

• AI discovery, measured directly — which tools people use to find books, and what they actually ask them

• Teenagers answering for themselves — not their parents answering for them

• Genre by genre — because "the American book buyer" is an aggeregate of very different people

Now back to what they found out about what book buyer think about AI in books in this, their first wave of results. 

One of their most interesting results is : 85% of US book buyers say a book should disclose if AI was used in writing it. Comfort with AI varies sharply by age - the demand for disclosure doesn’t.

I am concerned, but not surprised, about how many people are fine with AI as long as it is disclosed. While I myself and not fine with any AI in what I read, understanding where the general reading public lands on this issue is very important for us to know.

Click through to look at the preliminary results. Especially to the data break down by age. And remember, this is wave one. There is more data being compiled including:

• The overall makeup of the US book buyer - who they are, where they discover and buy books, how they spread their book buying across formats
• How categories look different - from who the buyer is to where they learn about new books, and what drives their purchase decisions
• How audio fits into the overall universe of book buying

Keep Book Insights bookmarked and handy. We need as many "insights" into our readers as possible, especially as we fight to educate them on what they need to "Just Say No to AI."