Four in five Welsh businesses using AI report efficiency gains

Nation.Cymru staff

Four in five Welsh businesses already using artificial intelligence say it has improved efficiency, according to new research.

A report from NatWest Cymru found 80% of Welsh businesses using AI reported efficiency gains, while 73% said it had increased innovation and 59% reported revenue growth.

The findings form part of a wider study of AI adoption among businesses across the UK, where 44% of firms surveyed said they were already using the technology and a further 41% expected to adopt it within five years.

However, the research found only 6% of current users had reached the most advanced stage, where AI was fundamentally changing how their business operated.

It also identified a potential divide between larger and smaller companies, with businesses employing more than 100 people almost twice as likely to be using AI as smaller firms.

The research drew on responses from 1,400 UK small and medium-sized and mid-market businesses, interviews with large corporate leaders and a survey of more than 2,400 NatWest retail customers.

The report also found concerns about how AI is used could affect its adoption.

Across the UK, 79% of customers surveyed said access to a real person remained important, while 76% wanted businesses to be transparent about when AI was being used and 75% wanted a better understanding of how their data was handled.

Robert Begbie, chief executive of Commercial & Institutional Banking at NatWest, said: “AI has the potential to be a powerful driver of growth, but the businesses that succeed will be those that use it to deliver better customer outcomes while building trust through transparency and human accountability.

“There is a real risk of an AI adoption divide emerging, particularly for smaller businesses with less access to skills, investment and specialist expertise.”

Siwan Rees, manager for NatWest Cymru Accelerator, said businesses in Wales were already seeing benefits from the technology.

She said: “The opportunity now is to help more businesses move from experimentation to implementation.

“By building skills, confidence and access to support, we can help ensure businesses across Wales are well placed to benefit from the opportunities AI presents.”

Support

NatWest said it was expanding support for businesses adopting AI, including training for its relationship managers and 5,000 AI learning and adoption engagements through its Accelerator programme over the next 12 months.

Other measures include specialist support with Google Cloud and an AI Adoption Programme in partnership with Lancaster University.

The bank also hosted a roundtable at its Cardiff Accelerator Hub this week bringing together business leaders, academics and industry organisations to discuss the use of AI, robotics and automation.

The discussion, chaired by Jacqui Murray, director of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult in South Wales, considered skills, innovation and the practical steps businesses could take to adopt new technology.

Training

Welsh technology company Academii was highlighted in the report as an example of a business using AI alongside virtual reality.

The company, which has received support through the NatWest Accelerator, uses the technologies to create personalised and immersive training for frontline workers.

Its platform is being used by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks to allow employees to practise complex operational scenarios in virtual environments before carrying them out on live infrastructure.

NatWest said the approach was intended to improve workforce skills and productivity while allowing employees to practise tasks in a safer environment.

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