Helping Brits to make AI work for them

Helping Brits to make AI work for them
A guest blog from Debbie Weinstein, Vice President of Google and Managing Director of Google UK & Ireland

AI has the potential to benefit every sector in the UK, from helping teachers craft engaging lesson plans to improving small businesses’ customer service, and even helping construction workers better manage building sites.

New analysis from Public First shows the scale of this potential, revealing that almost two-thirds of jobs across the UK (61%) will be significantly enhanced by AI. Whilst every sector will benefit in some way from AI, office workers and people in roles involving administrative tasks are likely to be transformed most profoundly.

This presents an unparalleled opportunity to transform the world of work. Previous research from Public First revealed that setting up Britain’s workforce for success could unlock over £400bn in AI-powered economic growth by 2030. Empowering people to use AI to get the most out of their careers and businesses would both improve the working lives of millions, and unlock productivity and growth worth billions.

It starts with local pilots

To help uncover ways to rapidly and radically accelerate the uptake of AI skills and connect more people to the benefits of this technology, Google is launching the AI Works initiative, partnering with a union, small and medium-size businesses and Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) in the education sector, to pilot different approaches to boost AI skills and adoption.

The first-of-its-kind initiative will see Google work with Community Union, Enterprise Nation and their network of small businesses including Grind Coffee, as well as multi-academy trusts Academies Enterprise Trust and Leo Academy Trust, to shape and test different approaches involving almost 1,500 people. It will aim to encourage more Brits to get working with AI.

Why now, and why the UK?

Over the past decade, Google has trained over a million Brits in digital skills to ensure everyone can harness digital technology to further their careers and grow their businesses. Even back then, we knew that businesses that use technology would grow twice as fast as those that didn’t and we saw the importance of taking action, to help prevent a digital divide.

As we did then, we want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to make the most of this new AI-powered era. So this is the moment to build on that foundation, working in partnership with others, to form a deep understanding of what will make the most impact at this critical moment.

Our efforts to bridge the AI gap

Throughout these pilots, Google will identify ways to empower groups who may have higher barriers to adopting AI. Additional research from Public First reveals the early signs of an AI uptake gap. Women, older generations and those with less formal education are less likely to use generative AI tools at work, regardless of their roles. Closing this divide is crucial to enabling everyone to benefit from the opportunities created by this fast-evolving technology.

How we’ll share the results

We’ve kicked off the pilots with a focus on these key groups, as they represent a large part of the working population, but this project is designed to uncover lessons that will benefit everyone. We’ll share updates throughout the project ahead of our final report, which will outline just how these insights can be scaled to help create new opportunities for every corner of the country.