Will AI Solve It All? A Transnational Qualitative Investigation of AI’s Role in Human Needs Fulfillment

Artificial intelligence is increasingly promoted as a transformative solution for addressing fundamental human needs and improving quality of life. However, limited empirical research examines what people expect from AI in relation to their needs and how current AI technologies are perceived to meet them. This study presents a transnational qualitative investigation of AI’s role in human needs fulfillment across six countries. Guided by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, findings show that recurring concerns about inaccuracy, hallucination, and trust point to informational integrity as an emerging need in AI-mediated contexts. Participants also viewed AI as a supportive tool rather than a replacement for human agency and creativity. Cross-national patterns showed a shared desire for personalized, adaptive AI, while the domains participants emphasized varied by country, reflecting local priorities. This work underscores the need to ground AI evaluation in lived experience and expand theoretical perspectives to account for evolving dimensions of human needs.