Towards Responsible Memory Augmentation: Surveying the Intended Uses of Everyday Augmented Reality and Artificial Intelligence for Memory Processes

With the advent of everyday Augmented Reality (AR) glasses the public will be able to receive personalised and context-relevant spatial information displays driven by complex Artificial Intelligence (AI) processes. Research on other everyday technologies shows that use can lead to beneficial or detrimental effects on human memory, depending on the use case or individual. Therefore, it is imperative to understand how everyday AR+AI might be used for memory purposes ahead of time, to ensure the creation of responsible memory augmentations: maximising benefits whilst minimising harms. Through a survey (N=120) we captured how likely respondents would be to use AR+AI devices for a list of 25 memory purposes derived from the literature and commercial materials. Our results predict frequent, pervasive and varied use of AR+AI across memory types, and that individual differences predict specific constellations or patterns of use. We provide recommendations for research areas that academia, industry and policymakers should prioritise.