A new report by Implement Consulting Group, commissioned by Google, says that AI deployment has the potential to spur significant economic growth in the EU.

AI continues to be a controversial topic, with companies, organizations, and governments trying to grasp its full impact on a range of issues, including employment, privacy, cybersecurity, ownership, and more. Many critics fear the tech will lead to mass layoffs as AI models take over jobs.

Catch our chat on how a Google report says AI could supercharge the EU economy!

According to Implement Consulting Group’s report, not only is AI unlikely to cause an apocalypse in the employment industry, but it is poised to do the exact opposite. The report included the following findings:

Economic opportunity: Generative AI could boost the EU’s GDP by EUR 1.2-1.4 trillion, amounting to +8% GDP over ten years if widespread adoption is achieved.

The gains come from three sources, including productivity increases from people working with generative AI, freed-up time from generative AI’s automation potential and the re-employment of time for other value-creating activities.

Job implications: In the EU, 61% of jobs are expected to work together with generative AI, 32% of jobs are likely to remain unaffected by generative AI, and only 7% of jobs are deemed highly exposed to generative AI, leading to some job closures. However, new jobs in the AI-powered economy are expected to replace those lost due to automation, resulting in unchanged employment levels.

Key sectors benefitting: Generative AI can boost productivity across sectors by augmenting and improving human capabilities. In contrast to past automation, such as robots, generative AI can boost productivity in services, where 80% of its economic potential lies.

AI readiness: The EU performs well on the early foundational drivers of AI adoption that ensure a safe and reliable AI-ready environment but lags behind globally on AI innovation drivers (talent, research, development and commercialisation). Present gaps indicate that the EU risks falling behind the next wave of AI and needs to ramp up its efforts to remain competitive.

The job implications are particularly telling, with AI only endangering 7% of jobs. When compared to the EUR 1.2-1.4 trillion boost to the overall GDP, however, the case can be made that those in the 7% will likely be able to find work in other roles.

Google’s AI Opportunity Agenda

In the wake of the report, Google’s Matt Brittin, President, Google Europe, Middle East, and Africa, unveiled the company’s AI Opportunity Agenda, a series of recommendations for governments looking to benefit from AI’s transformative impact.

The AI Opportunity Agenda includes the following points:

Investing in research and development

For the EU to truly compete in AI, it needs to make research and development a shared priority, as well as making funding more accessible. Without the right incentives to develop and commercialise AI innovation, Europe is stifling its talent and its chances of launching more home-grown tech unicorns.

Building infrastructure to support innovation

AI breakthroughs are only possible with the right high-performance computing technologies and data centres — and the renewable energy to support them. To enable AI innovation at scale, the EU will need to allocate more funding to financing such infrastructure — as well as incentivising and enabling the private sector to do the same.

Improving skills and training programmes

Technological growth will not be effective if people are left behind. Given its diversity, the EU must make sure technology benefits every business, economy and person. To do this, it needs to accelerate digital skills transformation, putting AI skills and education at the centre of a revitalised European Skills Agenda — and adding it to school curriculums.

Promoting widespread adoption

We ultimately need to ensure that AI is applied and deployed in a universally accessible and useful way. For the private sector, EU policymakers and AI developers must work together to develop outreach strategies to traditional industries and small businesses who have much to gain from AI adoption. For the public sector, member states must double down on existing initiatives to increase the public procurement of AI and developing bolder AI adoption targets.

Google clearly believes AI can and will be a positive force for good. If the study it commissioned is correct, governments inside and outside of Europe have a major opportunity in front of them.