Businesses in the UK seem to be more confident about AI than its peers abroad are. In fact, Gallagher says 93% of UK business leaders see AI as a positive opportunity for their company. That is up from 83% in both 2024 and 2023.
Gallagher’s 2026 Adoption and Risk Survey asked 200 UK business leaders a few things and found that 49% have introduced AI into parts of their business, which is an increase from 39% in 2024 and 20% in 2023. Another 12% say AI is fully operationalised.
Confidence also connects to revenue as 86% report a positive impact of AI on business revenue, and 83% believe AI will increase revenue. UK leaders see financial returns and are acting on that belief.
Steve Rhee, Global Chief Digital Officer at Gallagher, said, “UK business leaders are overwhelmingly positive about the possible benefits of AI adoption, with over 90% seeing it as a positive opportunity for their company. Intentions are clear and businesses have moved quickly to communicate ambitions internally, with over half having already set out an AI strategy to their workforce.”
Where Is AI Being Used Across UK Industries?
AI is now being used in daily work across so many sectors. This is how different industries and functions are using it:
1. Customer Facing Tools
52% of UK businesses use AI for chatbots and personal assistants. Customer service follows at 48%. These tools handle queries, draft responses and support service teams.
2. Research And Analytics
49% use AI to support research and analytics. Businesses use it to process data, generate summaries and assist with insight gathering.
3. IT And Fraud Management
45% apply AI in IT operations management. 44% use it for fraud detection. These areas rely on pattern recognition and automation to flag unusual activity.
More from Artificial Intelligence
- The Hidden Bottleneck Of The AI Boom: Why Thermal Throttling Is Slowing Down Your GPUs
- Will Meta’s Plans To Deploy Its Own Moderation Tools Better Regulate AI Scams?
- ChatGPT Has Been Flattering You And It Could Be Costing Your Business
- Nvidia’s AI Graphics Meet The Uncanny Valley – Are Companies Building Features Nobody Wants?
- OpenAI Just Made AI Cheaper And Faster. What Does That Mean For SaaS Startups?
- Are Middle East Data Centres Still A Viable Investment?
- Move Over NVIDIA: Tesla Is Building Its Own AI Chips and Startups Should Take Notice
- Microsoft, Amazon and OpenAI Are All Launching Health AI. Where Does That Leave HealthTech Startups?
4. Legal Services
Research from LEAP Legal Software finds that 62% of UK legal professionals are active, regular users of integrated AI tools. 31% use legal specific AI daily or as a core part of their work, the highest rate among the six countries surveyed.
79% of legal professionals in the UK and Ireland say AI saves their firm a moderate to significant amount of time. 40% deploy AI for document review and analysis, with drafting and legal research also common uses.
Across sectors, 63% of businesses now have either fully operationalised AI or introduced it within parts of their organisation. In 2023, 18% had not experimented with AI at all. That has now fallen to 4%.
Is AI Actually Paying Off, Though?
63% of surveyed businesses actively measure ROI from AI. They expect it will take an average of 28 months to see the value outweigh upfront costs.
82% say they are already seeing a positive impact on revenue. 86% report a positive effect on employee productivity. 84% confirm a positive impact on employee trust and engagement.
Ben Warren, Managing Director, People, Data, AI and Innovation at Gallagher, said: “Embedding AI in the operating model means redesigning processes and role definitions and building scalable AI platforms, and very few organizations are at that stage yet. What’s important, therefore, is understanding those areas in the business where AI can drive the most value and building on that.”
In the legal sector, 67% of UK respondents rate their firm’s AI training and expertise as good or excellent, the strongest result globally. Training and professional development rank above competitive salaries as a profitability priority.
What Risks Do Leaders Recognise?
Business leaders also acknowledge exposure. 57% rank AI errors, misinformation and hallucinations as a top risk. 56% cite legal and reputational risks from AI misuse, and 55% point to privacy violations and data breaches.
Governance frameworks are less common. Only 39% have developed AI specific incident response plans, and less than half have adopted formal risk management frameworks for AI use.
John Farley, Managing Director of Cyber at Gallagher, said: “AI liabilities aren’t simple data breaches; they’re a black box of algorithmic risk where traditional breach response approaches fall short. Managing these legal, operational and reputational exposures requires a multidisciplinary approach that addresses bias and blends oversight with data integration.”
