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Human Connection Over Machines: San Diegans Skeptical that AI Alone Can Perform Key Tasks
Residents say driving cars, teaching classes, umping baseball games, and financial planning should still involve people
New research from financial services company Northwestern Mutual finds a majority of San Diego adults do not yet trust artificial intelligence (AI) to exclusively perform a wide variety of tasks – including driving cars, teaching classes, umping baseball games, providing healthcare and childcare, and producing artwork like movies, books, music and paintings.
How trusting are you of leveraging AI / Gen AI for take over for...
| Trusting | Untrusting | |
| Human umpires and referees in professional sports | 44% | 56% |
| Humans driving cars (i.e. self-driving vehicles) | 35% | 65% |
| Nurses when obtaining your medical history / existing symptoms for your doctor visit | 36% | 64% |
| Teachers and professors for core curriculum classes | 37% | 63% |
| Parents for keeping kids accountable and teaching them about responsibility | 32% | 68% |
| Artists to produce movies, books, music, paintings, etc. | 39% | 61% |
Additionally, by a wide margin, most San Diegans today continue to trust financial advisors with their money management over AI tools alone. These are the latest findings from Northwestern Mutual’s 2025 Planning & Progress Study, the company’s proprietary research series that explores attitudes, behaviors, and perspectives across a broad set of issues impacting their long-term financial security.
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“Technology is advancing at a remarkable pace—almost as quickly as San Diegans’ perspectives on how it should be used,” said Daniel Shahmoradian, wealth management advisor for Northwestern Mutual. “Although over a third of residents are already incorporating AI into their personal or professional lives, many remain hesitant to rely solely on technology for critical financial decisions. They still value the guidance of a trusted advisor. That said, more than half express a preference for working with advisors who understand AI and use it to enhance financial planning and security.”
The research shows that across just about any financial planning scenario, San Diegans trust humans more than AI solely.
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Who do you trust more in the following scenarios?
| Trust Humans More | Trust AI / Gen AI More | Trust Both the Same | Not Sure | |
| Creating a retirement plan | 55% | 10% | 26% | 9% |
| Asking a financial question | 48% | 16% | 25% | 11% |
| Developing a tailored, robust financial plan | 53% | 13% | 21% | 12% |
| Making asset allocation decisions, building and managing investment portfolios | 45% | 16% | 27% | 13% |
| Creating a savings plan | 50% | 11% | 32% | 7% |
| Recommending financial products | 48% | 13% | 28% | 11% |
| Making updates to your personal customer information | 46% | 16% | 26% | 12% |
| Providing financial savings tips | 44% | 15% | 30% | 11% |
| Managing a budget and keeping me on track | 48% | 13% | 31% | 9% |
“AI offers powerful support in helping advisors create and manage well-rounded financial plans, and we’re increasingly integrating it into our process,” said Shahmoradian. “Still, financial planning goes far beyond just crunching numbers—it’s about understanding the people behind those numbers, their goals, their lifestyles, and the legacy they hope to leave. Those deeper insights come from meaningful, ongoing conversations that no technology can truly replicate.”
For more information about the study, visit https://news.northwesternmutual.com/planning-and-progress-study-2025.
About the 2025 Northwestern Mutual Planning & Progress Study
The 2025 Planning & Progress Study was conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of Northwestern Mutual among 4,626 U.S. adults aged 18 or older. The survey was conducted online between January 2 and January 19, 2025. Data are weighted where necessary by age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, marital status, household size, household income, and propensity to be online to bring them in line with their actual proportions in the population. A complete survey methodology is available.
About Northwestern Mutual
Northwestern Mutual has been helping people and businesses achieve financial security for more than 165 years. Through a comprehensive planning approach, Northwestern Mutual combines the expertise of its financial professionals with a personalized digital experience and industry-leading products to help its clients plan for what's most important. With nearly $700 billion of total assets(i) being managed across the company’s institutional portfolio as well as retail investment client portfolios, more than $38 billion in revenues, and $2.4 trillion worth of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual delivers financial security to more than five million people with life, disability income and long-term care insurance, annuities, and brokerage and advisory services. Northwestern Mutual ranked 109 on the 2025 FORTUNE 500 and was recognized by FORTUNE® as one of the "World's Most Admired" life insurance companies in 2025.
Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company (NM), Milwaukee, WI (life and disability insurance, annuities, and life insurance with long-term care benefits) and its subsidiaries. Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC (NMIS) (investment brokerage services), broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company® (NMWMC) (investment advisory and services), federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company (NLTC) (long-term care insurance). Not all Northwestern Mutual representatives are advisors. Only those representatives with "Advisor" in their title or who otherwise disclose their status as an advisor of NMWMC are credentialed as NMWMC representatives to provide investment advisory services.
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[1] Includes investments and separate account assets of Northwestern Mutual as well as retail investment client assets held or managed by Northwestern Mutual.
