AI: Most Brazilians already use virtual assistants

Matheus Lúcio
4 min readMay 4, 2023

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According to a survey, 67% of Brazilians have already used some form of virtual assistant. The market offers several applications and chatbots with artificial intelligence features that serve as virtual assistants.

Source: Pexels

The Brazilian population is increasingly inclined towards using smartphones. This increase may be related to the desire to optimize daily processes and tasks. Currently, the number of connected mobile phones surpasses the number of inhabitants in Brazil, with 242 million devices, according to data from FGV.

Another observation point, which may be linked to task optimization, is that, according to the study conducted by Ilumeo, most Brazilians have already used some form of virtual assistant. The data showed that the growth of voice-activated virtual assistants on smartphones rose from 87% to 91% in two years.

The survey also indicates that 67% of the respondents have used virtual assistants for various subjects, such as weather, for example. One can note that there are various applications and chatbots with artificial intelligence features available in the market that serve as virtual assistants and can help with several everyday processes such as health, schedule, studies, work, exercise, among others.

The popularization of voice-activated assistance devices, such as Alexa, Siri, and Google, is also a point brought up in the survey. According to Matheus Lúcio, an expert in software development, the evolution of artificial intelligence has allowed the creation of increasingly sophisticated virtual assistants like the ones mentioned above.

The expert comments that the use of virtual assistants can bring several advantages. “The most tangible consequences of using artificial intelligence in virtual assistants include improving efficiency and productivity, as well as greater convenience for users. For example, it is possible to perform tasks such as sending text messages, scheduling appointments, and making purchases without having to type or touch a keyboard or screen.”

Matheus Lúcio also adds that the use of these features has changed the way people interact with their electronic devices, making interaction more intuitive and natural. “Users can talk to their devices as if they were conversing with another person instead of typing commands on a keyboard or touching a screen. This can make the use of electronic devices more accessible to people who have difficulty typing, for example.”

Another recent example that has changed the market and interactions with users is Chat GPT. Launched at the end of 2022, the chatbot has been the subject of recent discussions in several countries on issues related to privacy and information control. Currently, there are about 100 million active monthly users, according to UBS data reported by InfoMoney.

Innovation in the market

The growth in the use of artificial intelligence and virtual assistants not only impacts the end-user but also companies. After all, like several trends, it is necessary for companies to keep up with these evolutions to be closer to their audience and improve processes.

Currently, Brazil ranks as the most advanced country in the use of artificial intelligence throughout Latin America, according to a SAS survey. About 63% of Brazilian companies that have data and analytics solutions use artificial intelligence. Of these companies indicated in the study, 90% invest in this data with the main objective of identifying consumption patterns and trends.

Another survey conducted by IBM showed that 41% of companies in Brazil already use AI in commercial operations and that 34% of companies are already exploring its use. The same data reinforce that the main challenge brought by companies in Latin America is ensuring information security, regardless of the size of the organization.

Matheus Lucio also agrees with the point brought up in the research: “It is important to consider the ethical and privacy issues related to the use of AI-based devices. The collection and use of users’s personal data need to be a concern, as well as the possibility that virtual assistants may be hacked or used to spy on people,” comments the expert.

For Matheus, it is essential that organizations responsible for creating virtual assistants and other AI-based resources are aware of these issues and work to ensure the privacy and security of users.

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Matheus Lúcio

Senior Full Stack Developer, with experience and knowledge in Cloud Computing. Specialist in Software Engineering and Architecture. https://mathz.dev