Viacheslav Voronenko

The development of innovation activities is of great importance on the path to achieving the goals of sustainable development. Success on this path is closely related to the presence of comparable information on the development of innovation activities at the regional level. The aim of the paper is to assess the development of innovation activities in the regions of Ukraine and identify differences in results. The study is performed using relative indicators for the assessment of the development of innovation activities in the regions of Ukraine. The indicators were averaged and normalized. To analyze how innovation activities change over time, the dynamic indices based on the geometric mean of the growth rate of the relative indicators were used. The obtained results have significant differences in the regions being assessed. Most regions have a heterogeneous development of innovation activities. At the same time, they are at the top and bottom of the rankings of the regions in different indicators of the development of innovation activities. Only Cherkasy and Zaporizhzhia oblasts are at the top of the rankings in at least 75% of indicators. However, in 2017‒2019, all indicators improved in at least 29% of regions. In addition, 75% of indicators improved in at least 54% of regions. Therefore, over time, most regions progressed in the development of innovation activities. Management decisions for the development of innovation activities should be complex for all regions and implemented primarily in the regions where there is no improvement over time.

Acknowledgments
The paper is prepared within the scientific research project “Sustainable development and resource security: from disruptive technologies to digital transformation of Ukrainian economy” (No. 0121U100470).

Policymakers, educators, and businesses must develop artificial intelligence-related initiatives and strategies to effectively engage and benefit the population. The study aims to evaluate awareness and readiness to utilize artificial intelligence by the adult population of Ukraine in 2022. The paper employed a questionnaire consisting of two sets of questions: 1) awareness of artificial intelligence and 2) readiness to use artificial intelligence. A total of 806 respondents were interviewed via an online survey. The margin of error does not exceed 5%. The results indicate that while Ukrainians have a generally positive view of artificial intelligence, they remain skeptical about the prospect of robots functioning as workplace partners. The majority find it difficult to envision collaborating with a robot in a professional setting (only 36.9% of Ukrainians are ready to work with a robot). The survey highlights that the primary benefits of AI products and services valued by Ukrainians include timesaving, increased comfort, and enhanced service accessibility. Ukrainian men demonstrate a greater degree of commitment and awareness of artificial intelligence products/services than Ukrainian women. Young people are the most informed age group about artificial intelligence products/services. Residents of the western regions indicate a more significant impact of artificial intelligence on the present, unlike respondents from the eastern regions of Ukraine.

Acknowledgment
This research was funded by a grant “Restructuring of the national economy in the direction of digital transformations for sustainable development” (№0122U001232) from National Research Foundation.