63% trust AI to inform important decisions at work, CIPD finds

This National Productivity Week, a Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) poll has found that almost two-thirds of people (63%) would trust artificial intelligence (AI) to inform – but not make – important decisions at work.

According to the poll of more than 2,000 people, more than a third (35%) would not trust AI to make important decisions at work, preferring to use human intelligence.

Just 1% of respondents would trust AI to make important work decisions.

In response to its findings, the CIPD encouraged organisations to lean into AI, which can help to boost productivity, but emphasised the need for a human-centred approach.

The professional body for HR and people development also called on employers and HR teams to have clear, principled guidelines on AI usage at work, covering ethical practices, data security and the fair treatment of people.

This came as the Government launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan to turbocharge growth across the UK and boost AI use in public services, which was welcomed by the CIPD.

Through comments on the poll, the CIPD also heard from business leaders and members of the HR profession who saw the benefits of AI but agreed that there must be human oversight and empathy for work decisions that impact people.

Others stated that it depends on what the decision is, and that trust in AI must be built over time.