Beware a two-speed workforce: AI skills are the new great divide

Far faster than anyone expected, artificial intelligence has moved from theory to workplace ubiquity. It is now embedded in the day-to-day operations of more than half of Britain’s small and medium-sized businesses and large organisations, such as mine, are seeing it re-shape our workforce, contracting mechanisms and commercial models. And yet, despite this rapid shift, we may be sleepwalking into a labour market split between those who can harness AI and those who can’t.

The good news is that the predictions of mass job losses have not materialised yet. Most businesses are using AI to support their employees, not replace them: automating administrative tasks, improving decision-making, analysing data, and freeing people to focus on higher-value work. This is promising given the findings of the Government’s Young People and Work report, which found that one million – one in eight – young people are not in education, employment or training (NEET). The annual cost of the number of NEET young people to the UK economy is £125 billion, which is more than is spent on education. We can’t afford for AI to exacerbate this issue. 

The widening AI divide 

While it’s fortunate that AI is proving to be a tool for augmentation, not displacement, the story doesn’t end there. Research we conducted with the British Chambers of Commerce, Powering Productivity: AI and the future of UK work, shows that as AI adoption deepens, particularly among firms using bespoke or advanced systems, the picture begins to shift. One in ten SMEs using bespoke AI expect workforce reductions. And 14% of firms investing in AI training anticipate headcount changes within a year. What will the data show us in a year’s time?

This widening divide reflects a broader warning from Sir Tony Blair, who argues that governing in the age of AI will be the principal challenge and opportunity. The AI revolution is not just another technology shift but a structural turning point for the UK economy. In a recent essay, he stresses that “the private sector will go through a process of adaptation to this new AI world”, warning that policymakers risk falling behind if they fail to grasp the scale and speed of change. 

Blair’s central argument is that AI will be the defining driver of productivity, growth and public-sector reform in the years ahead, but only if it is actively embraced. He makes clear that countries, companies and workers who fail to adopt and apply AI effectively risk being left behind in a rapidly changing global economy. 

Set against our findings, this reinforces the urgency of action. The divide we are seeing in UK SMEs today is not temporary; it is a sign of a much deeper shift on the horizon. Without a coordinated push to build AI capability across the workforce, the gap between those who can harness AI and those who cannot will continue to widen, shaping not just productivity outcomes, but long-term economic opportunity.

This is the early signal of a structural transformation. AI is not eliminating jobs wholesale, but it is changing what jobs require. Here is the risk of a two-speed system: workers who have access to AI tools and training will accelerate. Those who don’t will fall behind. 

How the two-speed workforce is emerging

We’re already seeing how this might play out in practice. In organisations where AI tools are embedded, expectations of productivity improvements are up 71 percentage points, while firms still in the planning stages of AI adoption are far less optimistic. This shows the value of continuous AI training, which will enable employees to complete tasks faster, make more informed decisions and therefore take on more strategic work. Employees without access to AI tools and learning risk becoming confined to narrower roles with fewer progression opportunities. This will disadvantage both individual employees as they look to develop their careers and organisations who are slow in tackling inefficiencies that could be solved. 

My own organisation – an AI-powered digital services firm – understands only too well how much the technology landscape is changing the workforce and commercial models for the services we deliver. We are acting now to train our people, adapt and reinvent.

While some roles will disappear because of AI, many technical roles are evolving, and new roles are being created. Within my company, these roles include Agentic Software Engineer, Human-AI Experience Designer and AI Ethics and Governance Specialist. 

This is why I believe that large employers, like mine, must demonstrate what is possible when businesses take skills seriously. The government’s NEET report found that young people not in education, employment or training are finding it harder to obtain entry level jobs, in part due to the impact of AI in the hiring process, but also because of businesses being unwilling to hire young people while technological and geopolitical shifts act as unpredictable disruptors. This is incompatible with the future success of the UK economy. 

Recently, we announced AI-proofed career paths for 30 apprentices at our new Sovereign Delivery Centre in Birmingham. The apprenticeships, delivered in partnership with Solihull College, give learners hands-on experience across AI, cloud computing, cybersecurity, data analytics and digital services, building careers that grow with technology through being diverse rather than siloed into a single specialism. 

This is the kind of thinking and investment the UK needs: programmes that don’t just prepare people for today’s jobs, but equip them with the adaptable, future-proof skills required in an AI-driven economy. It will require continuous and diversified learning and put the emphasis on behaviours such as a growth mindset, inquisitiveness, comfort with ambiguity and critical thinking. 

We are clearly in a time of adaption and reinvention in the digital workplace, which is why we have brought our Data and AI teams together with our HR function to plan a workplace where humans and AI co-exist. Because we already know that AI can do the job of a junior software engineer, our new career journeys are more a cycle than a ladder, where technology roles will need to be grouped into a diversified skills set across four or five different disciplines where the work is part human and part AI. Mastery across a broad breadth of skills will create new super-roles with a continuous learning loop needed alongside experience in delivery and real-world context. 

This process has given our workforce clarity on the roles that are likely to disappear, those that will evolve and the new roles that will or have been created. It has also allowed us to invest time in considering the structure and needs of our future workforce, ensuring we can adapt to guarantee success for both the company and our people. 

What businesses must do next 

AI offers a once-in-a-generation chance to boost UK productivity. But technology alone will not deliver growth. We must invest equally in AI infrastructure and people. 

The UK has the talent and the ambition. What we need next is a national commitment to ensuring that every worker, in every sector, has the chance to participate in the AI-powered economy. As a business leader, I’m committed to play my part in the re-skilling of our workforce and would urge others to do the same.

The stakes could not be clearer. In the age of AI, economic leadership will not be determined solely by access to technology, but by the breadth and depth of a nation’s skills. The countries that succeed will be those that equip their entire workforce to use AI confidently, creatively and responsibly. 

This requires a shift in mindset as much as actual investment. Organisations that treat skills development as a continuous process, one that is updated for the AI age we’re now living in, will be the ones prepped for change. Teaching new tools, encouraging collaboration with AI systems and evolving and creating roles are fast becoming fundamental. 

For the UK, this is a defining moment: to close the emerging skills gap, unlock productivity across every sector, and ensure that growth is both sustained and inclusive. If we get this right, AI can become the foundation of a more competitive, more innovative economy. But if we fail, the risk is not just a two-speed workforce, but a two-speed country.