Perception of Changes from the 4th Industrial Revolution: 53% Before COVID-19 → 73% After

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] Since the spread of COVID-19, public awareness and perception of the 4th Industrial Revolution have significantly increased. Many people identified the medical and healthcare sectors as areas where the sense of digital transformation and its necessity are particularly high.

The Presidential Committee on the 4th Industrial Revolution (hereinafter referred to as the 4th Committee) announced the results of the "4th Industrial Revolution Public Awareness Survey" including these findings on the 7th. This survey was conducted through online questionnaires and in-depth interviews targeting 2,000 citizens aged 19 and older, with a margin of error of ±2.19 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

The survey results showed that 89.1% of respondents said they were aware of the 4th Industrial Revolution, and 73.1% felt the changes it brought. These figures are significantly higher compared to the results at the end of 2019, before the COVID-19 outbreak, which were 58.4% and 52.8%, respectively.

Regarding the images that come to mind related to the 4th Industrial Revolution, "Metaverse" was the most frequently mentioned keyword, followed by answers such as platform, healthcare, and economy. In the previous year's survey, artificial intelligence, data, and robots were the majority responses.

When asked about the impact of digital transformation and future prospects, respondents viewed national competitiveness enhancement, productivity improvement, education and social welfare environment improvement, daily life improvement, and economic prosperity positively, while also expressing concerns about conflicts between countries, personal information infringement, and job security.

The sector where the sense of digital transformation and its necessity were highest was "hospital/medical/healthcare." As for areas where policy development is urgently needed, many respondents pointed to "disaster and quarantine," "public safety/security," "transportation and logistics," and "administration and public services."

Chairman Yoon Sung-ro stated, "Through experiences such as remote work and online learning during the COVID-19 situation, it has been confirmed through data that public awareness and the sense of the 4th Industrial Revolution in daily life have increased. We must promote policies to successfully achieve the digital transformation so that all sectors can grow and develop together."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.