UK companies plan to keep spending on AI, even if there is a recession
UK companies plan to continue spending on artificial intelligence, even if they can’t measure a return on investment or a recession occurs.
This is according to new data from KPMG, which surveyed more than 100 business leaders across the UK and found that a return of investment (ROI) is no longer needed to justify AI investment.
65% of UK respondents said their company would continue to invest in AI regardless of whether they saw a tangible ROI.
An even higher proportion, 70% of business leaders, said that AI would remain a top-priority investment even if a recession hits the UK economy in the next year.
While its seems measurable ROI is no longer needed to justify AI spending, there are a few ways UK companies are measuring the impact of AI on their operations, with companies generally confident in their ability to measure the technology’s effect on productivity, performance and quality of work, decision-making, and profitability.
When it comes to strategic benefits, however, businesses are not confident in their ability to measure the ROI of AI investment.
Only 14% of UK business leaders told KPMG they were confident in measuring ROI from improved analytics that inform C-suite decisions. 40% of respondents also found it difficult to quantify the long-term benefits of AI investment.
Despite the uncertainty over the effects of AI investment and its strategic benefits, there is still plenty of money flowing from UK businesses into the technology.
58% of business leaders said their organisations were planning to invest more than $50 million in AI over the next 12 months, with half of these companies planning to invest more than $100 million.
Job roles are being ‘redesigned’ for AI
Workforces are also set for massive change. More than half of UK companies said they were recruiting new AI-focussed roles, and 48% were ‘redesigning’ job roles in the face of AI adoption. Just 15% of UK business leaders said their current workforce was ready to meet the demands of AI integration.
“This shift in mindset by business leaders from viewing AI as something that must deliver an immediate return to one that sees AI as a long-term investment, recognising it as a strategic enabler for enterprise‑wide transformation, is an important milestone,” said KPMG UK Head of AI Dr Leanne Allen.
“But that shouldn’t translate into investing in AI blindly, without a clear strategy.”
She said businesses revisiting their workforce configuration was a positive move for employees as they are being reskilled for working with AI tools.
“Businesses are rightly focusing on workforce transformation through upskilling and reskilling, which is positive for employees,” Allen said.
“But it’s about far more than developing technical skills. As AI changes how work gets done and as human and AI agents increasingly collaborate, job roles themselves are being reshaped.”
“That means the fundamental skills required include adaptability, critical thinking, judgment, and the ability to work effectively with AI systems,” she said.
