Expleo AI Pulse
What feeling is leading sentiment on AI in business this month?
In a landscape where understanding of AI is changing all the time, so too are the opinions of the people deploying and using the technology in their working lives.
The Expleo AI Pulse tracks the attitudes of working-age adults towards AI-led technology on a monthly basis – measuring levels of worry, excitement, trust and confidence – to uncover the emotional forces shaping behaviour, long before decisions are made.
Is AI a risk or benefit to business?
Do business leaders believe AI is an overall risk or benefit to business (Net Promoter Score)
Respondents across all markets continue to see AI as having a positive overall impact on business. The consolidated score rises slightly to +44, although the picture varies by market. Germany records the strongest monthly increase, climbing from +39 to +60, while France remains stable at +44. The UK falls five points to +40 and Ireland drops ten points to +31.
*Data collection for Ireland began in February 2026
Are people worried about the cybersecurity risks that come with AI?
Are business leaders worried about the cybersecurity risks AI poses to businesses (Net Promoter Score)
All markets surveyed remain concerned about the potential cybersecurity implications of AI, although the consolidated score falls from +20 to +18. The UK is now the most concerned market at +23, closely followed by France at +22. Germany falls five points to +11, while Ireland records the largest monthly decline, dropping from +27 to +14.
*Data collection for Ireland began in February 2026
Are workers worried about the impact of AI on their jobs?
Are business leaders worried about the risk AI poses to their jobs (Net Promoter Score)
The surveyed markets remain less concerned about jobs than cybersecurity, although the consolidated score falls from -15 to -21. France becomes less concerned, rising seven points to -13, and the UK improves six points to -22. Germany moves in the opposite direction, falling to -26, while Ireland records the sharpest shift, dropping from +6 to -21.
*Data collection for Ireland began in February 2026
How we collect our data
Insights are taken from a monthly survey of representative sample of 800 working-age adults across the UK, France, Germany and Ireland in management and leadership positions, measuring levels of worry, excitement, trust and confidence in AI-led technology.
Question of the month
Compared with a year ago, what impact has each of the following had on your overall sentiment towards the use of AI within your organisation?
The drivers of sentiment towards AI are, on balance, pulling in a positive direction, but no single factor dominates. Respondents were most positive about the ability to demonstrate measurable business value, with 51% saying this had made them more positive about AI over the past year, compared with 18% who had become more negative. The ability to scale successful pilots into wider adoption produced the same overall split, while the quality, accuracy and reliability of AI outputs also ranked among the strongest positive influences. The findings suggest that sentiment improves when organisations can show that AI works in practice, delivers measurable value and can move beyond isolated trials. Governance matters too. In the UK, 52% became more positive because of their organisation’s ability to govern, monitor and manage AI risks, compared with 22% who became more negative. Taken together, the results point to proof, scale and effective oversight as the conditions most likely to strengthen confidence in AI.
Think about a favourite brand or company and their website or marketing materials. How would it affect your trust if you believed the content had been created entirely by AI?
When it comes to AI-generated content, the question is less whether businesses can use AI to make it, and more whether audiences will trust the result. The data suggests caution rather than enthusiasm. While 35% say AI-created adverts, promotional materials or other business communications would make no difference to their trust, almost the same number say their trust would decrease. Only one in four say their trust would increase. This pattern is broadly consistent across markets, suggesting that AI-generated content is not just a production issue, but a brand trust issue. AI can help businesses create content more efficiently, but customer-facing communications still need to show human judgement, authenticity and quality control. Taken together, these findings suggest that the way businesses use AI in customer-facing content may matter just as much as the decision to use it.
How much would you trust AI to act independently in the following activities within your business?
A common question we face is where to draw the line on allowing AI to act independently. When it comes to productivity or administrative tasks, the majority are comfortable handing over control: 68% are happy for AI to autonomously ‘summarise emails, documents and meeting notes’, and 66% would let AI ‘organise calendars and schedule meetings.’ More interestingly, views become evenly split when decisions carry greater weight. For AI independently ‘making strategic business decisions,’ respondents were almost perfectly divided — 40% comfortable and 41% uncomfortable. The same pattern appears for AI making HR decisions and financial decisions, with four in ten comfortable and the same proportion uncomfortable. Taken together, these findings point to a rising familiarity with AI and a level of comfort that simply did not exist a few months ago.
If the AI tools you use today were no longer available, what impact would this have on your day-to-day work?
With AI tools embedded in the workflows of many organisations and individuals, it is worth considering the positive impacts they have made. When asked what impact it would have if the tools they use were no longer available, 22% of survey respondents said it would make their work more stressful, with the same number saying it would make their work more complicated. By comparison, 18% said it would make their work less stressful and 20% said it would become less complicated. These responses suggest a clear split in AI maturity and adoption levels in workplaces around Europe. Meanwhile, 18% said they would not notice any difference whatsoever, suggesting a many workplaces and workers remain resistant to AI adoption.
If an AI incident occurred tomorrow, how confident are you that your organisation could demonstrate accountable governance?
With AI becoming heavily embedded in business processes and the day-to-day working lives of people, it’s important that appropriate safeguards, structures and policies are in place for the technology. When asked whether they believed their organisation could demonstrate accountable governance related to AI, at least two-thirds of respondents responded positively in each market, with an average of 69%. France stands out at the top of the range (73%), suggesting a comparatively higher level of preparedness or trust in governance structures, while Germany sits at the lower end (66%), reflecting a slightly more cautious sentiment. The UK (68%) and Ireland (69%) cluster closely around the overall average of 69%, indicating broadly similar levels of maturity and assurance. Nonetheless, with 27% answering that they were unconfident, it hints at a possible maturity divide between businesses as AI models and adoption evolves.
With the increased adoption of AI in business, which skill do you believe will be most important for managers in the future?
According to respondents, the ‘ability to integrate AI into workflows and drive change’ will be the number one skill required by managers in the future, with 25% choosing this option. However, when comparing markets, this varied significantly, reaching as high as 30% in Germany and falling as low as 19% in Ireland, where people leadership and empathetic coaching was the number one response. Across all markets, ‘oversight of algorithmic compliance, ethics and governance’ was chosen the least of the five provided options.
One of the key benefits of AI tools pitched for the average worker is the ability to save time and improve efficiency. But, how much of that benefit are people seeing today? According to our most recent survey, the average worker across France, Germany, Ireland and the UK are saving 3.3 hours per week using AI tools. Based on a 36-hour working week, that means that workers using AI are seeing a 9% efficiency gain when using AI tools. Of those surveyed, just 6% said they were not using AI tools and as much as 22% said they were saving five hours or more per week.
While many conversations around AI emphasise how quickly the technology is evolving, two-thirds (65%) of business leaders believe their organisation is moving at the right pace with AI. In fact, just one in ten believe they are moving too fast with almost twice as many saying they are moving too slow (18%). This reflects the overall confidence levels when it comes to AI across all markets and perhaps suggests that those using the technology are growing increasingly comfortable with it in their daily lives.
Concerns around the accuracy and reliability of data or responses received from AI tools, in the shape of hallucinations or otherwise pose a significant problem for businesses embedding these tools into day-to-day operations. Our survey showed this is front of mind for many, with 52% of respondents saying they are concerned by the accuracy and quality of data they receive from AI tools. However, there was a notable split in attitudes by market with overall levels of concern higher in the UK and France, at 59% and 55% of respondents respectively, compared to just 43% of respondents in Germany.
Which areas do you think businesses will prioritise for AI investment in 2026?
As we entered the New Year, we asked our respondents which areas businesses will invest in. With Gartner predicting 2.5 trillion USD in 2026 – a 44% year-on-year increase – AI promises to be high on agendas once again.
Number one on the list? Cybersecurity. In all three markets, this area was highlighted as the main area of investment, highlighted by 41% of all respondents. As the AI Pulse has shown elsewhere, concerns over cybersecurity and AI remain front of mind. As such, businesses are looking to counteract that risk.
Trailing behind as the second and third highest rated priorities was automation (30%) and data analysis & insights (29%). These have long been identified as areas where AI can have major efficiency gains for businesses, and it looks as though more are looking to capitalise on those benefits.
Number one on the list? Cybersecurity. In all three markets, this area was highlighted as the main area of investment, highlighted by 41% of all respondents. As the AI Pulse has shown elsewhere, concerns over cybersecurity and AI remain front of mind. As such, businesses are looking to counteract that risk.
Trailing behind as the second and third highest rated priorities was automation (30%) and data analysis & insights (29%). These have long been identified as areas where AI can have major efficiency gains for businesses, and it looks as though more are looking to capitalise on those benefits.
How concerned are you the environmental impact of AI technologies your company uses or creates?
With AI agents now replacing everyday web searches and becoming embedded into more and more daily tasks, conversations about the environmental impact of AI are growing louder.
Of the countries surveyed in November’s AI Pulse, the proportion of respondents ‘concerned’ or very ‘concerned’ with the environmental impacts of AI technologies used or created by their business was just 42%. However, this varied significantly by market, with concern highest in the UK (54%). By comparison, just 43% of French and 30% of German respondents were ‘concerned’ or very concerned.’ This highlights the latest disparity in attitudes between our markets, perhaps reflecting the levels of adoption in each.
Of the countries surveyed in November’s AI Pulse, the proportion of respondents ‘concerned’ or very ‘concerned’ with the environmental impacts of AI technologies used or created by their business was just 42%. However, this varied significantly by market, with concern highest in the UK (54%). By comparison, just 43% of French and 30% of German respondents were ‘concerned’ or very concerned.’ This highlights the latest disparity in attitudes between our markets, perhaps reflecting the levels of adoption in each.
How concerned are you about AI’s use for monitoring productivity and performance in the workplace?
In October, the notion of AI in monitoring productivity and performance in the workplace gained momentum. When surveyed on the use of the technology for this purpose, 50% of respondents said they were somewhat or very concerned. However, this number varied significantly by market, reaching 56% in the UK and falling to 38% in France and 39% in Germany. This disparity perhaps reflects the strong culture of employee rights in the latter, as well as a cooling job market in the UK.
Are we in an AI bubble?
Investments in AI technologies continue at a sustained pace. According to the European Parliament, last year European countries invested a combined total of some €19.4 billion (report published in September 2025 entitled "Making Europe an AI continent"). This is significantly less than in the USA, where over €109 billion was invested during the same period. Nevertheless, the debate about a potential "AI bubble" gains momentum in the media and is being felt by companies across the world. While business leaders remain confident in the potential of AI, as highlighted by the Expleo AI Pulse confidence index, 49% surveyed in September believe we are already in an "AI bubble," compared to 41% who do not.
Will regulations support ethical use of AI in business?
With adoption levels of AI growing almost exponentially, national governments and international bodies are moving to create legislation which supports growth and innovation, while protecting users. Respondents across the UK, France and Germany are overall cautiously optimistic about the capacity for regulations to strike this balance, with 50% saying they will support ethical use of AI in business, compared to just 25% believing they will not.
More insights from the Expleo AI Pulse
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
AI confidence gap widens as UK leaders look for clearer evidence of business value
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
Ireland’s AI transformation concerns are climbing despite rising confidence levels
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK business leaders apply greater scrutiny as AI hype cools
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK business confidence in AI slips from peak, finds Expleo
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
Businesses in Ireland double down on humans and empathy amid AI adoption
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
AI-led cybersecurity fears spike as nearly six in ten UK business leaders express concern, according to AI Pulse
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
Confidence in AI increases among businesses in Ireland, but concern still outpaces that of European neighbours
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
Irish business leaders express concern about AI, new sentiment tracker reveals
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK AI Pulse down three points in January as sceptics force confidence to fall to lowest level in five months
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK business leaders’ confidence in AI remains high, but may mask integration issues, Expleo warns
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK shows growing trust in AI regulation, as doubts simmer in EU – according to Expleo AI Pulse
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK business more optimistic about AI than German and French counterparts, Expleo AI Pulse finds
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationData science & cybersecurityIndustry 4.0
Expleo AI Pulse: When it comes to AI, culture and people matter
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationData science & cybersecurityIndustry 4.0
Expleo AI Pulse: Are we in an AI Bubble? Does it even matter?
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
UK leaders predict ‘AI bubble’ but overall confidence remains high, according to AI sentiment tracker
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationData science & cybersecurityIndustry 4.0
Expleo AI Pulse August 2025
Understanding the sentiment towards AI in business
Artificial intelligence & roboticsBusiness transformationDigital transformationInnovation and R&D
Expleo’s August AI sentiment tracker reveals UK business is ‘confident’ about its benefits
Latest news