AI summary
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The latest survey shows that most Americans are willing to use AI to help with holiday gift giving, but there is still skepticism about payment transactions; At the same time, inflationary pressures have made low- and middle-income families more conservative in holiday spending.
In a new survey, more than half of Americans said they would seek the help of artificial intelligence (AI) with their holiday shopping; But most of them won’t tell their gift recipients that they use AI.
USA Today reported thatvisa In the “2026 Holiday Consumption Change Survey” released by the company, 65% of respondents said they would use AI to assist in holiday shopping; 24% of them said they feel more comfortable using this technology compared to last year. The survey, conducted by Morning Consult, asked more than 1,000 American adults about their thoughts on the upcoming holiday season.
However, 41% of respondents said they would not tell someone that AI helped them choose a gift. Visa economist Michael Brown said that in terms of perception, if AI is used to assist in the gift shopping process, it will have an impersonal effect on people; Consumers would prefer to use AI behind the scenes, but not necessarily disclose that this is how they use it to research gifts.
Shoppers surveyed said the tasks they are most willing to delegate to AI include comparing prices (61%), confirming inventory (59%), finding discounts (57%) and providing gift suggestions (54%).
Generation Z is the most open to using AI to assist with shopping, with more than 80% of them willing to accept this technology, and 73% said they would let AI provide gift suggestions; This rate is 19% higher than the total adult population.
Although the number of people willing to use AI to buy gifts is increasing, many people are not willing to let AI complete the transaction. According to Visa’s “Trust Index”, only 23% of consumers express a willingness to trust Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) to process payment transactions.
Brown noted that previous technological changes like online shopping and mobile banking also took time to build consumer trust. He said that consumers used to feel hesitant about online banking services, but now it has become a part of everyone’s daily life.
The National Retail Federation estimates holiday sales will increase 4.2% this year compared to last year, while two independent consulting firms predict a decline in holiday spending.
According to the “2026 Holiday Outlook” survey from tax services agency PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), holiday gift spending is expected to decline 2% from last year. Consumers are expected to spend an average of 708 yuan on gifts this year, with families with children spending 875 yuan and families without children 635 yuan.
According to management consultant Simon Kutcher’s “Eighth Annual Holiday Shopping Study”, Americans plan to reduce spending during this year’s holiday shopping season by 5.5%, leading to a decline back to 2024 levels; However, the study suggests this deficiency is not widespread. Low- and middle-income families are under greater economic pressure, while high-income families are still a strong driving force in the consumer market.
According to research by Simon-Kucher Management Consultants, the average holiday consumption per household is expected to reach 1,018 yuan.
In Visa’s survey, cost is the most worrying issue for the public, with 84% of respondents saying they have taken at least one measure in the past year to deal with rising daily expenses; The most common ones include looking for discounts (47%), cutting back on non-essential expenses (35%) and switching to lower-priced brands (33%).
Brown said government and Visa data show overall consumer spending remains strong. But he pointed out that deeper exploration could clearly show that regardless of any income level, inflation is actually reducing some consumer spending among low- and middle-income households; According to Visa data, non-essential spending, especially travel plans, has declined this fall.
