A new study by Peak shows the UK could be losing out on £190 billion in the global tech market.

The Decision Intelligence Maturity Report report followed 3,000 workers globally, tracking the adoption of AI technology by businesses with more than 100 workers in the UK, US, and India. 

Trailing behind India and the US in AI maturity, the UK is missing out on a key element in tech market growth. 

The UK was behind in AI adoption – only 20% of UK businesses included in the study had adopted AI, trailing 25% in India and 28% in the US.

The study suggested a correlation between data literacy and AI maturity, with higher data literacy among Indian and US staff. Only 64% of UK workers say they had performed data analysis at least once, compared to 98% in India and 81% in the US. 

Demand for data scientists increased by 231% in the last five years, according to LinkedIn, and hiring for data science roles increased by 46% between 2019 and 2021.

Despite this, 50% of workers in the study overall reported no training in data science. 

This is unsurprising as about 13% of the Scottish jobs are currently in tech, and the need for data analysts in Scotland has increased by over 500% since 2019. 

AI is not the only tech sector hurting: cybersecurity is facing a dramatic work force gap in the UK.

It’s estimated that the global data science platform market size is expected to grow from $37.9 billion (USD) in 2019 to $230.80 billion by 2026. Demand for AI platforms continues to grow, as does demand for an intelligent workforce. 

In contrast to this growth and demand, only 48% of UK businesses say they are data-driven compared to 81% of Indian workers and 69% in the US. 

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David Leitch, co-founder and CIO of Peak, warned: “The UK is still Europe’s leading startup hub, but it’s a crown that could easily slip.”

“A clear lack of data literacy in the UK is threatening growth in the tech sector, our research has identified data science as a particular area of concern, but there are other industries, categories and specialities that similarly need government investment and support if the UK is to realise its potential as a leading tech hub.”

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