Why the UK’s AI-powered prosperity hinges on skilling for all
In this Viewpoint, Darren Hardman, CEO, Microsoft UK & Ireland, argues that AI skills are vital to the UK’s prosperity and a catalyst to social mobility. But organisations need to adapt faster to the new work paradigm and make AI skilling a priority if the UK is to make the most of this huge economic opportunity.
I recently met students at Manchester Academy, a secondary school close to where I grew up. I was impressed at how many of them were already thinking seriously about AI and how it could shape their future.
Many of these young people came from disadvantaged backgrounds, but they were focused on gaining the skills they needed to succeed in the AI economy. And they were imagining how they might use the technology to make a positive difference in their lives and communities.
My conversations have taught me something important about this moment for the UK: we will only make a success of AI if everyone has the skills, confidence and equal opportunity to participate in it.
Talent and opportunity
Earlier this year, I was honoured to be appointed Social Mobility Champion for the Government as part of the TechFirst skilling programme – something that means a great deal to me given my own personal and professional journey. Because while talent exists everywhere in this country, opportunity does not.
And this matters enormously in the age of AI. The countries and organisations that will benefit the most from AI will be the ones that broaden participation fastest, ensuring AI skills and capabilities are diffused across every region, sector and stage of people’s careers.
That’s why, last year, Microsoft was the first industry partner to back the Government’s national AI skills drive, with its target to provide AI skills to 7.5 million workers by 2030. We’ve made great progress – Microsoft alone has helped more than 1.5 million people gain AI skills so far – and the Government’s target has since been expanded to 10 million workers.
Preventing the skills gap
Microsoft’s Work Trend Index research suggests AI adoption is moving faster than many organisations could imagine. Workers are increasingly experimenting with AI tools and bringing them into the workplace to solve problems, improve productivity, and expand what they can do.
But many organisations have not yet redesigned their systems, workflows and management practices to support that enthusiasm and build on it.
While employees are increasingly working like it’s 2026, some organisations are still operating like it’s 2019.
Unless businesses, educators, government and the technology sector as a whole work together to build AI capability more broadly across the workforce, the UK risks hampering its ability to compete and grow. The gap between those able to participate and thrive in the AI economy, and those left behind, will widen.
Building AI fluency
In my experience, not everyone starts from the same place. Access to opportunity, networks, education and digital skills is still too often shaped by geography, background or circumstance. And, if access to AI capability follows the same pattern, there is a significant risk that the benefits of the intelligence economy also become unevenly distributed.
Schools with greater resources are already moving faster on AI, with more staff training, clearer implementation strategies and greater confidence using these tools effectively. Meanwhile, schools serving more disadvantaged communities are often falling behind through lower access to training, guidance and support.
So building an AI-ready economy will require businesses and organisations across the UK to build AI fluency within their own workforces.
Becoming frontier
Many of our customers are rolling out AI capabilities to their people, but the ones that are doing it best are those that ensure skilling and training are at the heart of their AI transformation.
These leading AI organisations – companies like Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, PwC, Accenture, Vodafone and M&S come to mind, as well as critical government departments like DWP and HMRC – understand that technology is only as good as people’s ability to use it effectively.
These are organisation on a path to become Frontier Firms.
Universities are also helping prepare the next generation workforce for an AI-powered economy. For example, the University of Manchester is going all in on AI, becoming the first university in the UK to offer Microsoft 365 Copilot to all 65,000 students and staff – embedding AI into learning, research and day-to-day university life.
This reflects a broader recognition across education and business that AI capability will increasingly become a foundational workplace capability.
Human qualities
The countries that succeed in the AI era will be the ones that expand capability and opportunity most broadly across society. For organisations, that means treating AI fluency as a core workforce capability – investing in continuous learning, embedding AI skills into role development and goal setting, and creating cultures where people are encouraged to experiment, adapt and grow.
But technical skills alone will not define success. The organisations that thrive will also invest in the human qualities AI cannot replace – creativity, curiosity, communication, compassion and courage. These “five Cs” will shape how effectively people work alongside AI, how human-agent teams collaborate, and how organisations navigate change at speed.
Prioritising skilling
Many of the tools and training resources organisations need already exist. Through initiatives like the Government’s free AI Skills Hub – developed with support from industry partners including Microsoft – organisations of every size can begin building AI capability across their workforce today.
When I think back to the students I met up and down the country, just like those at the Manchester Academy, what stays with me is that they already understand how AI will shape their future at work. What they are asking is whether they will have the opportunity to participate fully in the AI economy.
So, my message is: make AI skilling a priority. For the good of your organisation. And for the prosperity of our country.