AI Assistants Emerging as a Rival to Traditional Apps for Everyday Tasks

TELUS Digital survey shows 32% of consumers have replaced at least one app with an AI assistant in the past year

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- According to a new survey from TELUS Digital (NYSE and TSX: TIXT), consumers are using AI assistants in place of traditional apps, with nearly one-third (32%) saying they have replaced at least one app with an AI assistant in the past year. The top reasons given were greater convenience (62%), faster results (54%) and a better overall user experience (53%). A year from now, 36% of survey respondents think they will rely on AI assistants more than apps for the majority of everyday tasks.

One in three consumers has replaced at least one app with an AI assistant, and even more expect to do so within a year.

AI assistants (such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini) are growing in popularity as they take on a wider range of modalities, such as voice commands and image recognition, and speed up and simplify tasks like planning, shopping and organization. The latest evolution, the ability to support third-party apps within AI assistants, is poised to further accelerate this trend, enabling users to handle everyday tasks from start to finish in one conversation.

Do consumers prefer AI assistants or apps?

When survey respondents were asked whether AI assistants or apps perform better across specific criteria, they gave AI assistants the edge in most categories:

• Speed: 83% say AI assistants complete tasks faster than apps
• Ability to adapt and learn preferences: 71% say AI assistants adapt better over time
• Personalization: 54% say AI assistants provide more customized experiences
• Accuracy: Consumers were evenly divided between AI assistants and apps

Trust remains a key part of the user experience and will continue to shape whichever channel consumers prefer and rely on the most. Only one in four (24%) said they trust AI assistants to protect their personal data, while half (50%) trust apps more, and another quarter (26%) don’t trust either.

When asked whether AI assistants or apps perform certain tasks better:

• Health and fitness: 46% said they prefer an AI assistant to design an exercise plan, compared to 35% who would use an app, while the rest say neither or no preference
• Shopping and retail: 63% prefer using an app to research products, while 33% would use an AI assistant
• Banking and finance: Two-thirds (67%) prefer to use an app to find the best mortgage rate, compared to 24% who would choose an AI assistant
• News and media: 51% prefer an app to find the day’s top news stories, while 40% would use an AI assistant

Will we still have apps in 2026?

Despite the momentum of AI assistants among consumers, traditional apps remain relevant. Over the past year, more than half (58%) of consumers said there's been no change in their app usage, and nearly a quarter (24%) said they used them more often. Respondents highlighted several strengths that keep them engaged with traditional apps:

• Loyalty rewards and perks (51%)
• Ease of browsing (37%)
• Familiarity and habit (35%)

“This study shows the beginning of a marked change in consumer behavior, as users are increasingly turning to AI assistants for tasks that were once considered app territory. This trend creates a critical opportunity for brands to differentiate themselves,” said Tobias Dengel, President, TELUS Digital Solutions. “While AI assistants deliver speed and flexibility, apps continue to matter to consumers, offering reliability, rewards and familiarity. The real opportunity for brands is to merge the best attributes of both into AI-powered apps supported by entry points from leading AI assistants such as ChatGPT and Gemini. The experiences should complement each other, leaning on their respective strengths.”

Dengel continues, “At TELUS Digital, we’ve long believed that every app will need to be rebuilt for an AI- and voice-first world to deliver richer, more intuitive experiences. The brands that invest in strong, user-friendly application foundations and securely connect their AI capabilities through shared APIs will be best positioned to deliver seamless, personalized, and trustworthy interactions within AI assistants. Until now, chat interfaces were primarily about information, but as we move towards having third-party apps that can be invoked directly within a chat, they’re becoming about execution. There’s a clear first-mover advantage for businesses that invest now in this next wave of customer engagement.”

Is AI helping consumers adopt new technologies faster?

TELUS Digital’s survey data indicated that consumers’ comfort level with new technologies more generally also played a role in whether or not they had replaced an app with an AI assistant in the past year. Just over half (52%) of self-proclaimed technology early adopters made the switch, compared to 28% of those who defined themselves as technology laggards.

Historically, new technology adoption spreads slowly among consumers, but AI may be disrupting that pattern due to its ease of use and ability to personalize interactions. The survey results reflected an acceleration of AI adoption.

Survey respondents who identified themselves as early or late majority technology adopters, the groups sandwiched between early adopters and laggards, expect to rely on AI assistants more for the majority of their everyday tasks one year from now:

• Early majority: 35% think they will rely on AI assistants more than apps in one year; currently 29% say they have replaced an app with an AI assistant
• Late majority: 16% think they will rely on AI assistants more than apps in one year; currently 24% say they have replaced an app with an AI assistant

TELUS Digital offers trusted AI consulting services

TELUS Digital, a leading global technology company specializing in digital customer experiences (CX), helps brands deliver smarter, connected experiences across every stage of the customer journey. We achieve this by combining deep expertise in critical, interconnected disciplines, including advanced Machine Learning (ML) engineering to develop and operationalize proprietary AI solutions and sophisticated API engineering to build the secure, scalable foundations that allow apps to seamlessly connect with leading platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini. This is layered with full-stack development and agile best practices, which collectively help brands accelerate revenue growth and operational efficiency through a seamless blend of technology, data and human ingenuity.

The company brings proven methodologies to accelerate delivery, including AI-Assisted software development through its AI-First Lean Teams model, which has been shown in internal assessments to speed software delivery by up to 45% while reducing costs by 55%. Combined with ongoing application support and agile transformation coaching, TELUS Digital ensures the apps they build for brands today will continue to meet evolving customer expectations.

TELUS Digital has been named a top AI consultancy and digital design firm through several industry awards. The company’s President of TELUS Digital Solutions was named one of The Consulting Report’s Top 25 Technology Consultants and Leaders of 2025, the company was recognized with three 2024 Webby Honoree distinctions for excellence in mobile app and enterprise website development, and TELUS Digital has been awarded “Chatbot Platform of the Year” for Fuel iX™ by the AI Breakthrough Awards.

For more information on TELUS Digital’s web and mobile app development services, visit: telusdigital.com/solutions/digital-product-and-marketing/mobile-app-web-development-services

Survey Methodology: TELUS Digital’s survey findings are based on a Pollfish survey that was conducted in September 2025 and included responses from 1,000 adults aged 18+ who live in the United States, who use AI assistants (like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Alexa and Siri) on at least a monthly basis. For the purpose of this survey, ‘early adopters’ were defined as those who are among the first to try new technologies, ‘early majority as those who usually wait until new technology is tested and proven before using it, ‘late majority’ were defined as those who prefer to adopt new technology only after most people they know are already using it, and ‘laggards’ are those who avoid new technologies until it’s absolutely necessary.

About TELUS Digital

TELUS Digital (NYSE & TSX: TIXT) crafts unique and enduring experiences for customers and employees, and creates future-focused digital transformations that deliver value for our clients. We are the brand behind the brands. Our global team members are both passionate ambassadors of our clients’ products and services, and technology experts resolute in our pursuit to elevate their end customer journeys, solve business challenges, mitigate risks, and drive continuous innovation. Our portfolio of end-to-end, integrated capabilities include customer experience management, digital solutions, such as cloud solutions, AI-fueled automation, front-end digital design and consulting services, AI & data solutions, including computer vision, and trust, safety and security services. Fuel iX^TM is TELUS Digital’s proprietary platform and suite of products for clients to manage, monitor, and maintain generative AI across the enterprise, offering both standardized AI capabilities and custom application development tools for creating tailored enterprise solutions.

Powered by purpose, TELUS Digital leverages technology, human ingenuity and compassion to serve customers and create inclusive, thriving communities in the regions where we operate around the world. Guided by our Humanity-in-the-Loop principles, we take a responsible approach to the transformational technologies we develop and deploy by proactively considering and addressing the broader impacts of our work. Learn more at: telusdigital.com

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Source: TELUS Digital