Cost-Cutting or Trust Building: Consumer Motive Inference and Purchase Intention Toward AI-Produced Food
Chenhan Ruan1,2, Yuanyuan Quan1, Xu Li1
1School of Economics and Management, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
Foods (Basel, Switzerland)
|May 4, 2026
Summary
Consumers view artificial intelligence (AI) in food production negatively, inferring cost-cutting motives that reduce trust and purchase intent. Corporate reputation can mitigate these effects.
Area of Science:
- Consumer Behavior
- Food Technology
- Artificial Intelligence Applications
Background:
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly adopted in food production, presenting companies with a choice between AI and traditional methods.
- Consumer perceptions of AI-produced food are inconsistent, with limited research on motive inferences during AI adoption.
- Motivation inference theory provides a framework to understand consumer attributions regarding business practices.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how food production methods (AI vs. traditional) influence consumer motive inferences.
- To examine the impact of these inferences on consumer purchase intentions.
- To explore the mediating roles of cost-cutting attributions and perceived ulterior motives, and the moderating effect of corporate reputation.
Main Methods:
- Three experiments were conducted to test the hypotheses derived from motivation inference theory.
- Participants' inferences about company motives, trust, and purchase intentions were measured in response to AI- versus traditionally produced food scenarios.
- Statistical analyses were used to examine mediating and moderating effects.
Main Results:
- AI-produced food led to more negative motive inferences related to trust-building compared to traditionally produced food.
- AI adoption in food production lowered consumer purchase intention.
- These effects were mediated by attributions of cost-cutting and perceived ulterior motives.
- A high corporate reputation attenuated the negative impact of AI adoption.
Conclusions:
- Consumers infer negative motives (cost-cutting, ulterior motives) when companies adopt AI in food production, impacting trust and purchase intention.
- Firms should manage consumer perceptions carefully when implementing AI, considering the role of corporate reputation.
- This research offers insights into consumer psychology concerning AI in the food industry, guiding strategic adoption of AI practices.
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