UK faces AI talent shortage as demand outpaces supply, research finds

Robert Walters and Native Teams found the UK could face a shortage of more than 160,000 artificial intelligence (AI) professionals by 2028, with demand expected to reach almost 300,000 and domestic supply estimated at just 137,000. 

The research showed businesses are investing heavily in AI and automation to improve efficiency, but talent shortages are leading many firms to hire internationally.

Phill Brown, global head of market intelligence at Robert Walters, said: “The scale of projected demand for AI talent is expected to significantly outpace domestic supply growth in many advanced economies, including the UK. 

“Historically, major advances in technology only translated into meaningful productivity growth once organisations had the workforce capability to implement them at scale. 

“The same dynamic is now emerging with AI, where access to experienced talent will play a defining role in how quickly businesses can convert investment into measurable economic output.”

Jack Thorogood, founder and chief executive officer at Native Teams, said: “Expanding AI hiring outside of domestic labour markets could help lift UK productivity growth by between 0.5 and 1.5 percentage points annually, by helping organisations scale AI capability more quickly and reduce deployment delays linked to talent shortages. 

“Many businesses in the UK are already investing in AI, but access to experienced talent is one of the main constraints on how quickly those systems can be implemented operationally. 

“At the same time, companies are becoming far more comfortable building globally distributed AI teams.”