Objectives: The adoption of Artificial Intelligence is influenced by a myriad of factors including employees’ perceived risk acting as a salient barrier to AI adoption in organizations. Numerous prior studies, grounded in acceptance frameworks, have focused on individual level psychological determinants that impact adoption. This study examines the direct effect of perceived risk, social influence, and organizational trust on behavioral intention to adopt AI and to what degree social influence and organizational trust influence the effects of perceived risk in AI adoption intent. Methods: Using validated scales, a quantitative online survey was administered to employed adults in the United States across multiple industries and organizations. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), the data was analyzed to determine the resulting direct relationships between perceived risk, social influence, organizational trust and behavioral intention to adopt AI and test the interaction effects for the proposed moderators.Results: Observed results indicated perceived risk is negatively associated with behavioral intention to adopt AI, while social influence positively impacted behavioral intention to adopt AI. The interaction effect between social influence and perceived risk was statistically significant indicating that social influence attenuates the negative association between perceived risk and behavioral intention. In contrast, organizational trust did not significantly influence behavioral intention to adopt AI and did not significantly moderate the relationship between perceived risk and behavioral intention. The model explained 43.9% of the variance in behavioral intention to adopt AI (R2 = 0.439) and exhibited strong predictive relevance (Q2 = 0.411). Conclusion: The results of this study reinforce the negative impact of perceived risk towards AI adoption intentions and highlights social influence as a key factor shaping employees perceptions of risks associated with AI and their intentions to use the technology. Organization leaders may improve adoption outcomes by reducing perceived risks through targeted communications, training, and proper governance practices while targeting credible social referents to support AI adoption. The non-significant results of organizational trust influence warrant further investigation. Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Perceived Risk, Social Influence, Organization Trust, Behavioral Intention, UTAUT, PLS-SEM.
