A survey of 2,900 UK workers by Henley Business School’s World of Work Institute has found that the proportion feeling overwhelmed by the pace of AI change at work remains stuck at 61 per cent — unchanged from the same survey run in 2025.
The research, published as the institution’s second annual AI Pulse Check, marks a year in which employer optimism about AI has continued to rise while worker confidence has barely moved. Caution is now the dominant feeling associated with AI at work, named by 28 per cent of respondents, up from 26 per cent in 2025. Only 11 per cent say they feel confident.
Nearly two-thirds of AI users (63 per cent) say they sometimes choose not to use AI tools even when available, a finding the report attributes to a cluster of persistent concerns: 43 per cent worry about becoming over-reliant on AI, 35 per cent fear losing critical skills, and 28 per cent are uncertain about their ability to spot errors or bias in AI outputs.
The employer side of the picture is only marginally better than last year. Sixty per cent of respondents say their organisation either has no AI guidance in place or they are unsure whether it exists — an improvement from 68 per cent in 2025, but still a clear majority without practical direction.
Generational fault lines have sharpened. Thirty-six per cent of all workers fear AI could replace their role, rising to 44 per cent among Gen Z. Yet Gen Z workers are simultaneously more comfortable with AI directing aspects of their work (59 per cent versus a base rate of 45 per cent), and more likely to trust their employer to act in employees’ interests when introducing AI (70 per cent versus 55 per cent across all respondents).
The survey also found 35 per cent of workers would consider leaving an employer that failed to provide AI training or support, and 61 per cent say training would make them more likely to use AI tools.
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