New research commissioned by IBM reveals that more than one in three (37%) UK businesses with over 1,000 employees are now actively using artificial intelligence.
The study found that enterprises are jumping on the AI bandwagon to reap quick and tangible rewards, specifically around IT automation, security and threat detection, and human resources.
As well as the businesses that are already rolling out AI tools, nearly half (41%) said they are currently exploring using the time-saving tech.
British businesses love AI
Compared with the 37% of British businesses that have already rolled out AI, only 29% of Australian businesses, 28% of Spanish businesses, and 26% of French businesses have done so.
IBM also noted that Australian and Canadian enterprises are less likely than those from the UK to accelerate their rollouts.
Other key areas of interest include business analytics and intelligence, fraud detection, and customer or employee self-service automation. Fortunately for us humans, IBM noted that fewer organizations are interested in digital labor, which suggests that we shouldn’t be worried about job security.
However, the research also underscores the impact of AI on the UK workforce, with one in four (24%) organizations lacking employees with the right skills, and one in five (19%) noting that the global skill shortage continues to affect hiring.
Other obstacles are also prevalent, including costs, data complexity, and even ethical concerns.
This study of more than 2,300 IT professionals makes it clear that enterprises recognize the importance of correctly governed AI, but some barriers remain.
Looking ahead, while the economy is largely out of our hands, IBM reckons the two-thirds (68%) of UK businesses that aren’t training or upskilling workers on AI should start to do so, which should at least have an impact on the skill shortage.
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