UK Businesses Face "AI Divide" as Microsoft Urges Adoption and Strategy

Some British firms 'stuck in neutral' over AI, says Microsoft UK boss

Survey of bosses and staff finds that more than half of executives feel their organisation has no official AI plan Some companies are "stuck in neutral" in their approach to artificial intelligence, according to Microsoft's UK boss, who said a significant number of private and public sector organisations lack any formal AI strategy. A Microsoft survey of nearly 1,500 UK senior leaders across public and private sectors, as well as 1,440 employees, found that more than half of executives feel their organisation has no official AI plan. Roughly the same proportion report a growing gap in productivity - a measure of economic efficiency - between employees who use AI and those who do not. "Some organisations appear to be stuck in neutral, caught in the experimentation phase, rather than in the deployment [of AI]," said Darren Hardman, the tech company's UK chief executive. Microsoft, the biggest financial backer of the ChatGPT developer, OpenAI, has been pushing AI's deployment in the workplace through autonomous AI agents - tools that can carry out tasks without human intervention. Early adopters of Microsoft's Copilot Studio product, which deploys bots, include the blue-chip consulting firm McKinsey, which is using agents to carry out tasks such as scheduling meetings with prospective clients. The Tony Blair Institute, a thinktank, has estimated AI could displace up to 3m jobs in the UK, although it expects the net loss to be in the low hundreds of thousands as the technology creates new roles. Speaking to the Guardian, Hardman said AI agents would remove the "digital drudgery" of people's jobs and allow them to focus on the "creative aspects" of their jobs, potentially creating new roles as the first wave of the internet did for the retail sector. Referring to the creation of new roles in retail such as data analysts, web designers and social media managers, he said: "The nature of that industry changed with the onset of the internet. And I think the creation of an agentic workplace is going to do the same." Hardman said proposed reforms to UK copyright law, which are fiercely opposed by Britain's creative industries, would provide "wider economic growth for the UK". He said: "We think it's going to provide clarity. We think it's going to support AI development." The UK government is proposing to allow tech companies such as Microsoft to use copyright-protected work without permission in order to train their models. Critics of the proposals have described them as a "wholesale" transfer of wealth from the creative industries to the tech sector. Separately, the former chief executive of BP Bernard Looney has been appointed the chair of the UK technology startup ExpectAI. Looney left the oil and gas company in 2023 after admitting he had failed to fully disclose a series of personal relationships with his colleagues to the board. He has been appointed to help accelerate the expansion of ExpectAI, which uses data to help small and medium-sized businesses cut costs and reduce emissions.

Microsoft - UK can help drive the global AI future, but only with the proper buy-in

Possible half a trillion pound opportunity for AI and cloud UK economy over the next decade The new CEO of Microsoft UK has hailed the possible impact that AI can have on the nation's organizations in a potentially challenging future business landscape. Speaking at the company's Microsoft AI Tour London event, Darren Hardman outlined how, "from lifesaving healthcare innovations to sustainable technologies that focus on enhancing social, economic and environmental impacts, AI is leading the way." "For the UK as a whole, AI has the power to recast the nation's growth ambitions and ensure our position as a global player in launching new AI businesses, but also cementing our position in the industries, in which we're strong," he declared. "Like the industrial revolution of the 19th century, our 21st century AI revolution represents the opportunity to bring sweeping changes to the global economy," Hardman went on to say. "For businesses, it's about innovating faster, optimizing processes, and having greater control about how we work, cutting the digital drudgery, removing the mundane, and doing more of the work that we love," he added, "supercharging efficiency, enhancing services, and unlocking better outcomes for citizens." Hardman's speech was accompanied by new Microsoft research which found, perhaps unsurprisingly, that business leaders are enthusiastic about the potential AI offers, with many keen to roll out technology such as AI agents. Microsoft's study found almost three quarters (72%) of leaders expected AI agents to be fully integrated across their operations soon, with 21% anticipating this to be within the next 12 months, and 39% within two years. However the report also warned of a growing "AI Divide" between those business planning to embrace AI and those lacking investment or buy-in, with more than half (54%) of business leaders admitting their organization lacks any formal AI strategy, and worryingly, fewer than half (45%) say their firms properly understand the AI skills their workforce needs to be successful today. Hardman struck an optimistic tone, declaring there is a half a trillion pound opportunity for AI and cloud UK economy over the next decade. "There is a clear and urgent demand for AI in its many forms from developers to decision-makers across government, education and business," he stated. "But more than that, economic growth depends on it."

Businesses are facing an "AI Divide" - which could be the difference between success and failure

AI Agents could play a particularly key role, if they are implemented correctly Businesses across the UK are facing a tough outlook if they fail to embrace the possibilities and potential benefits offered by AI tools, new research has claimed. The findings of a new Microsoft study predict UK businesses are at risk of not being able to grow if they are on the wrong side of the "AI Divide" of those firms with (or without) a tangible AI strategy. This outlook could put the opportunity to boost the UK's economy and improve its public services at a widespread scale at risk, the report warns. The report noted the "AI Divide" was shown by the fact that, while half of organizations have a clear AI strategy and the skills to implement it, a similar proportion do not. More than half (54%) of business leaders admitted their organization lacks any formal AI strategy, and worryingly, fewer than half (45%) say their firms properly understand the AI skills their workforce needs to be successful today, with half (50%) also describing a gap between AI ambition and action. This AI divide also extends to the workforce, with more than half (57%) of leaders reporting a widening gap in efficiency and productivity between workers who use AI and those that do not - and more than a third (36%) of leaders even saying those workers who frequently use AI would be more likely to be recognized or promoted. AI agents are set to take on a prominent place at many firms, helping employees alleviate their workload and hopefully unlock greater productivity. Microsoft's study found almost three quarters (72%) of leaders expected AI agents to be fully integrated across their operations soon, with 21% anticipating this to be within the next 12 months, and 39% within two years. "Agentic AI can play a key role in removing digital drudgery, giving workers the opportunity to spend more time on creative and value adding tasks," noted Darren Hardman, CEO, Microsoft UK. "At Microsoft, we're helping to build an AI economy, investing in digital skills and tackling the AI divide, all pre-requisites to driving AI fueled economic growth for the UK."