AI’s potential to tackle the UK’s productivity puzzle
The UK stands to gain a vital £400bn worth of economic growth from AI-powered innovation. But half of this depends on workers actually adopting the technology. And whilst interest in AI is at an all time high, many people are yet to discover its potential for transforming their work and productivity.
Currently, two thirds (66%) of workers — particularly older women and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds — have never used generative AI at work. And when it comes to the world of commerce, the use of AI by smaller businesses lags far behind larger ones.
These trends show that we can’t afford to leave AI adoption to chance. That’s why, last summer, we launched ‘AI Works’, a partnership which set out to uncover the most effective ways to accelerate AI adoption and upskilling, building on over a decade’s worth of digital skills training that has reached over 1 million Brits.
No one company can unlock AI’s full economic benefits alone, so we partnered with a union, small businesses and educators from 15 schools across the UK to trial different upskilling methods. Our AI Works pilot explored the experiences of 1,700 people from across the public and private sectors working in organisations of all sizes.
The AI Works report is out
Our newly released AI Works report reveals both the project’s valuable learnings and actionable recommendations that will enable the nation to unlock AI-powered growth.
Here’s what we found:
- AI habits are easy to form - Just a few hours of training can double daily AI usage, with usage remaining high even months after the pilots. This impact is true across all segments of the population, with upskilling significantly narrowing the adoption gap among women over 50.
- People want “permission to prompt” - We found that workers want reassurance that AI use is allowed, and like using the internet or search engine to complete a task more efficiently.
- And finally, our pilots confirmed that AI adoption really does save time! - In fact, workers across the different sectors estimate that generative AI is now saving them roughly over 122 hours a year, exceeding our modeled estimates of 100 hours/ year.
These are encouraging findings, showing the significant impact that a little training can have on driving widespread adoption.
Where do we go from here?
At Google, we’re evolving Google Digital Garage — our digital upskilling programme — in line with the findings from AI Works. In response to strong demand for prompting support, we're launching a new interactive 'AI Prompting Essentials' webinar, which builds on our existing AI upskilling resources like the New Fundamentals series. Additionally, we’re extending our AI Works partnerships, by rolling out the pilot resources to all of the UK-based schools in the Google for Education network and extending our partnerships with Enterprise Nation and Community Union.
Our ambition is for this report to encourage leaders to seize this opportunity to equip everyone with the skills and tools needed to benefit from AI-powered growth. Here are some of our recommendations:
- We need to make sure every business gets on board. As outlined in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, we need to make sure the Industrial Strategy supports AI adoption across key industries
- The public sector should lead the way. We’re calling on the Government to guarantee AI training and access to AI tools for all public sector workers.
- Finally, we need to create a lifelong learning culture for individuals. That’s why we are encouraging a Skills England-backed accreditation system that recognises short and effective AI upskilling courses.
To learn more about how to unlock an AI-powered economic boost, read the full AI Works report here.
