New Research Predicts 42% Of All Business Tasks Will Be Automated By 2027

The UK government recently announced a £10 billion push into AI, setting the context for a new look at automation across British workplaces. Research from B2B lead generation agency Sopro paints a detailed view of how fast automated systems are entering daily business activity.

One main theme from the Sopro data is where money goes. More than half of all corporate AI budgets are directed at sales and marketing automation. Companies channel cash into systems that handle outreach, personalisation and customer contact, because these tools link closely to income.

Sales teams already feel the effects because according to Sopro, 61% of sales organisations use AI to handle repetitive tasks such as CRM updates, data entry and meeting summaries. This frees up hours each week for conversations with customers rather than admin.

The pace of automation also extends beyond sales. 42% of all business tasks could be automated by 2027, reports find. This estimate covers office work across many departments, not factory floors alone, and just goes to show how common software led automation may become in the near term.

Which Tasks Are Businesses Handing To Machines First?

Marketing activity is at the front of the automation drive. Sopro found that 71% of companies either use or expect to use marketing automation, with 49% applying it to personalisation. Automated emails, timed messages and audience grouping now form a regular feature of campaigns.

Time savings comes closely behind this take up. Marketing automation saves an average of 6 hours per week on routine work, based on the same research. Those hours often went into scheduling posts, sending follow ups and pulling reports before automation tools arrived.

Efficiency is the top reason teams turn to AI. Nearly 4 in 5 marketers, which is about 79%, told Sopro that efficiency gains matter most when using automated tools. Faster workflows allow teams to handle higher volumes of activity without growing headcount.

Cost control also is another big one, because automated workflows bring operational costs down by an average of 12.2%, according to Sopro. This covers savings from fewer manual errors, quicker processing and less staff time spent on low value work.

What Does Automation Mean For Workers And Services?

Automation already touches customer service desks. Contact centre agents using AI assistants record productivity gains of 14%, Sopro reports. These tools summarise calls, suggest replies and pull up knowledge articles during live chats.

Customer data handling also changes as around 60% of businesses now automate lifecycle segmentation through AI models. This means software sorts customers into groups based on behaviour and timing, allowing messages to land when they match customer needs.

Sales teams experience daily changes, too. Automated reminders, note taking and qualification checks remove much of the background admin that once filled the working day. As a result, teams can manage more accounts without longer hours.

The scale of expected change might explain why automation features so strongly in business planning. The government’s £10 billion investment announcement reflects confidence that AI tools will anchor growth across the economy, while Sopro’s research shows firms already embedding automation into core operations.