More than two-thirds of workers using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) say it has a positive impact on their productivity at work, a new report has found, but employers are less likely to encourage the use of the new technology.
The majority of Irish companies – 90 per cent – do not have a policy on GenAI despite the number of people using it growing from 33 per cent in 2023 to 48 per cent last year. Those using it for work tasks rose from 32 per cent to 36 per cent over the same period, with writing and editing emails and looking up information the most common uses.
The Deloitte Digital Consumer Trends report, which surveyed 1,000 people in Ireland, found 67 per cent of GenAI users said it boosted their productivity, but only 24 per cent said their employer actively encouraged staff to use it.
However, it has not yet become an essential technology for many. Some 10 per cent of those using GenAI are doing so daily, with 28 per cent using the technology on a weekly basis. Forty-six per cent use it less than monthly and 24 per cent said they did not know how to use it well.
Unsurprisingly, younger people were more likely to embrace AI, with 85 per cent of those in the 18 to 24 age group saying they used it. That fell to 69 per cent in 25 to 34 age group and 56 per cent among the 35 to 44 cohort. Older age groups fared poorly, with usage of GenAI dropping to 34 per cent among over-45s and 22 per cent for 55 to 64 year olds.
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Less than half of users generated ideas using the technology, while 38 per cent used it to create written content, and 35 per cent for summarising text and reports. Only 20 per cent used GenAI to generate images.
“Employees in Ireland are racing ahead of their employers when it comes to GenAI. This means gains are being left on the table by ers and innovation is being stymied,” said Emmanual Adeleke, Deloitte Ireland’s GenAI leader.
“There is a risk in not reacting to the increase in usage, particularly because users are not fully appreciative of the dangers involved as indicated by the level of trust certain users have in GenAI tools, despite well-documented reliability issues. If ers invest properly in GenAI and integrate it correctly, they will uncover the challenges involved and the tremendous potential of this technology.”
Despite workers embracing the technology the survey also indicated some uncertainty about its use, with 60 per cent worrying about the impact on job availability in the future and 46 per cent concerned that it will replace some of their role in the workforce.
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