Mascaret took part in the MEDEF’s REF 2023, a not-to-be-missed event on the entrepreneurial calendar! Our CEO Benjamin GRANGE had the opportunity to lead a round table discussion entitled “2024, l’Odysée de l’IA?”.

In an increasingly complex economic and geopolitical context, REF 2023 enables us to reflect, innovate and accelerate towards a more promising future. The issues addressed are real contemporary challenges, and are also subjects on which Mascaret (formerly Dentsu Consulting) has built up its expertise.

Among the major themes discussed are resource scarcity, the future of work, #artificialintelligence, economic warfare and transportation.

For this fifth edition, Benjamin GRANGE moderated a round table on the theme “2024, the AI Odyssey?”. An opportunity to question the entrepreneurial stakes of AI, its implementation and its economic opportunities. A topic that raises questions about the ability of this technology to contribute to the common good and the development of a more #responsible society, while including all economic players.

A discussion on real contemporary issues, enriched by the participation of Alexis Kasbarian, Véronique TORNER, Aline Aubertin, Minggang Zhang, Philippe Latombe and Charles Znaty. We thank them once again for their presence and their valuable contributions to this discussion.

Mascaret (formerly Dentsu Consulting) and its partner ODOXA bring you an innovation barometer to better understand the French’s relationship with artificial intelligence.

Research and healthcare are the main areas in which the French have the greatest expectations of AI. The two complementary fields are seen as necessary for the development of societies. Health was the subject of much debate during the Covid-19 pandemic. The advent of AI in the wake of a health crisis could fuel hopes of reforms made possible by this technology.

Today, the AI race is of interest to the general public. However, mistrust remains: 64% of those questioned said they neither trust nor believe in the ethics of AI-created content. Nevertheless, they feel that this new technology needs to be regulated, and support the EU’s intention to do so.

One question keeps coming up, though: why is AI a topic that has exploded in the year 2023?

AI has become tech’s star subject. It is being mentioned more and more: less than 5,000 mentions per day in 2022, compared with an average of 10,000 today. Its media peaks are also four times higher than last year.

The popularization of AI has not been driven by experts, but by “recurring topics that are popular with the general public”. In particular, language models such as ChatGPT have contributed to the democratization of this technology, offering applications that are accessible to all. But the popularization of AI has also been driven by influencers who have seized upon it, primarily on TikTok and YouTube!

According to our analysis of public opinion and social networks, AI is most often associated with work! Recurring questions raise the question of the substitutability of humans for machines, and the risk that AI poses to our jobs.

For an even more detailed analysis, see the full barometer below!

Recent events have shown us just how important a role social networks play in disseminating information, for better or for worse. Our expertise in opinion research – particularly online – enables us to share with you a few points and dynamics that we feel are important to note:

• A political staff in trouble. President Emmanuel Macron, who had been benefiting from the post-retirement lull, has returned to a volume of presence (peak of 370,000 mentions on June 30) and negative sentiment (75%) similar to April’s levels. On the opposing side, all attention was focused on Jean-Luc Mélenchon. He reached levels of mentions almost equal to those of the 2022 election, and far superior to the pension reform. Marine Le Pen, on the other hand, is much more discreet, maintaining a perfectly stable presence. However, neither has seen any significant change in sentiment!

There were also some weak indicators. For example, the lexical field surrounding the events: compared to the terms “demonstration” or even “revolt” that were used to describe opposition to pension reform, “riot*” won the semantic battle for the June events. Opinion also clearly took a rapid fall on the subject of riots, peaking on June 30 at 80% negative sentiment. The record was beaten – with 90% of negative content – by the PR’s proposal to “cut off social networks”: users of all stripes did not appreciate this, and the first reaction was largely to equate this type of action with those of an authoritarian regime…

Don’t hesitate to share your thoughts, comments and opinions on these subjects with us!

The post-retirement political climate is unstable: the government in trouble on social networks, dissolution of ecologist groups, while the RN – NUPES duel turns to the RN’s advantage…

In partnership with ODOXA, we bring you a new political barometer.

Key findings:

• Emmanuel Macron’s popularity rating continues to climb (+2 points since April), despite the general public’s growing disinterest in politics.
• Members of the government and the majority in difficulty on the networks: Gerald Darmanin, Yaël BRAUN-PIVET and Marlène Schiappa reach peaks of negative sentiment. The latter is one of the most rejected personalities, with 48% of negative opinions.
• Edouard Philippe and Marine Le Pen top the list of political personalities. 53% of French people think that the RN has been strengthened by its attitude during the pension reform sequence, and only 33% think so about the NUPES.
• On social networks, opinion is mixed following the dissolution of the ecologist association “Les soulèvements de la Terre”: while the majority of Internet users are uncomfortable with the use of the term “ecoterrorists”, the collective’s controversial methods are diminishing the number of its supporters.

You can find the full survey on our website, as well as the “Expert’s Eye” section by Benjamin GRANGE and Yves CENSI.

Photo Marie-Pia Rieublanc – Creative Commons