AI adoption rates show no sign of slowing. Organisations are rushing to adopt state-of-the-art AI coding technologies for their employees, with 78% of businesses in 2025 using AI in at least one function. However, amid the pace of transformation, a hidden stigma is preventing employees from embracing it fully in their day-to-day roles. 

Recent research speaks to this problem. A recent Pew Research Centre survey revealed that 91% of American workers are allowed to use AI – but only 16% actually did. In some cases, this might be due to skills gaps or a lack of awareness of where AI could help them. However, we’re increasingly seeing workers hesitating to use the tool because they fear how they will be perceived if ‘caught’ using it. 

Harvard Business Review’s latest findings on the ‘hidden penalty of using AI at work’ unveiled similar insights. The publication surveyed engineers at a leading tech company, only to realise that less than half of the company’s engineers had been using the AI tools it offered. To understand why this might be, participants evaluated code written by another engineer, either with or without AI assistance. Engineers who are believed to use AI are deemed, on average, 9% less competent by their peers.

This unveils an unfortunate but unsurprising truth: competence penalty is still rampant in the tech world. Perhaps most alarming, the problem is twice as severe for women. Those deemed to have used AI faced a 13% reduction, compared to 6% for male engineers.

Women are disproportionately affected by the competence penalty, often judged as less capable simply for leveraging the tool. Now this bias is showing up in how they, and other employees, might use AI in the workplace. Understandably, women might therefore hesitate to use AI for coding – if they do use it, it might be used as ‘proof’ against them that they can’t do the work otherwise. 

This is echoed by the findings: engineers who hadn’t adopted AI were the harshest critics of those who had used it. Specifically, male non-adopters evaluated code by women who’d used AI 26% more harshly than male engineers who had.

The competence penalty and negative perceptions around AI will do more than just knock women’s confidence – it’ll create larger barriers to adoption of new technologies. Some may put off using the tools as a self-preservation instinct, reinforcing inequality between employees and impeding adoption within the business. They’ll also be impacted negatively, as their AI investment won’t yield the return expected.

It is in an organisation’s best interest to address prejudice against AI adoption. It can play a key role in normalising it as a tool that enhances productivity, not one that replaces competence. This includes creating learning environments where people can experiment with AI without judgment, and ensuring that employees are not penalised for using sanctioned tools.

Unfortunately, the longstanding bias against women in STEM is nothing new and predates the advent of AI. GitHub’s 2016 study – nearly ten years ago – revealed a similar sentiment. Three million code submissions were presented without disclosing the engineer’s gender. Anonymised female-written code saw a 78.6% approval rate, but shot down to 62.5% when gender was announced.

Business leaders have a responsibility to address this prejudice and help women embrace new technology without fear of judgment. Organisations need to find creative ways to get more women involved and to support them. On a day-to-day level, this can look like organising hackathons and workshops to get teams excited. These efforts, however, should be holistic: business leaders need to ensure that the culture around technologies is inclusive and that female employees can give feedback on their experience.

Simone Mink is the product operations lead at Mendix, a Siemens business.

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Some useful insights here on attitudes towards AI in the workplace – are millions at risk of unemployment via replacement? Maybe not, perhaps AI is a toolkit that streamlines admin but doesn’t completely replace its core function.

UK workers are increasingly aware of how artificial intelligence (AI) may reshape their jobs, and show greater optimism than European peers, according to new findings from ADP Research. The research reveals that while 88% of UK respondents have formed views on AI’s impact, 14% strongly believe it will improve their work – placing UK workers above the European average of 11% and ahead of major economies including Germany and France.

This is according to ADP research, in a global study, surveying 38,000 working adults across six continents, including 1,113 in the UK, to gain a comprehensive understanding of their feelings toward AI and its potential impact on their jobs. The ‘People at Work 2025’ report series provides insights on the labour market from the perspective of workers explored respondents’ views on AI, their familiarity and openness to it, and their concerns about job displacement related to the technology. 

The report highlights a nuanced picture of how workers are engaging with AI – balancing informed awareness with selective optimism. While UK workers demonstrate above-average confidence in AI’s benefits compared with European peers, the research reveals opportunities for businesses to build on this foundation.

“UK workers are demonstrating a measured approach to AI that positions businesses for success” said Jeff Phipps, General Manager for the UK and Northern Europe. “Many understand how AI could reshape their roles, but they are realistic about challenges, combined with low replacement fears, this creates an ideal foundation for AI adoption. New technologies like generative AI are meant to give teams enhanced capabilities to save time, simplify their daily tasks, and free them from time-consuming work, but they are not intended to replace them.”.
He continued: “The opportunity for businesses is clear. UK employers who acknowledge this emotional complexity and invest in upskilling their people will be best placed to unlock AI’s full potential and build a resilient, future-ready workforce.”

With just 12% of UK workers strongly agreeing they have “no idea” how AI will change their jobs, the vast majority have already processed what AI might mean for their roles.

Key UK findings

• Low resistance, high awareness: With only 9% fearing job replacement – well below global anxiety levels – UK workers show openness to AI transformation when properly supported.
• Sector leadership emerging: UK professionals in tech, finance, and IT are leading the way in AI optimism, with nearly one in five in technology services expressing a positive outlook, followed by 18% in finance and insurance and 17% in IT, suggesting early adoption success stories in key UK industries.
• Knowledge workers ready to lead: 24% of knowledge workers, such as programmers, academics and engineers, globally see AI benefits, with UK knowledge workers well-positioned to capitalise on AI opportunities through training and support initiatives.

Key Global Findings from the People at Work 2025: Artificial Intelligence

• Mixed feelings dominate: While 17% of workers strongly agree that AI will positively influence their job in the next year, and 33% agree, overall feelings are mixed. Only 1 in 10 workers strongly agree to feeling scared that AI will replace their job.
• Hope and Concerns in Tandem: Interestingly, 27% of workers that believe AI will positively impact their jobs also fear that technology might replace them. For example, markets with the most optimistic outlook on AI, such as Egypt or India, also have the highest share of workers fearing replacement. This indicates that AI evokes both excitement about its potential and concerns of its ultimate effects.
• The unknown reinforces anxiety: A significant portion of people (44% combined agree/strongly agree) have no idea how AI will change their jobs. This uncertainty can contribute to anxiety, with some markets showing a large share of workers who fear replacement also having a large share who are unsure about AI’s impact.