Eight hours saved weekly as over 90% of local workers adopt AI
Across offices and workplaces in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar, artificial intelligence has quietly shifted from an experimental tool into a standard daily routine. A report from Boston Consulting Group shows that 93 per cent of frontline workers across the GCC now use AI at least several times a week, comfortably outpacing the global frontline average of 74 per cent. For managers and team leaders in the region, that figure reaches 95 per cent.
Workers win back a full day each week as job expectations shift
The biggest immediate impact hits the weekly schedule. Roughly 58 per cent of GCC frontline staff report that AI tools save them at least eight hours every week, the equivalent of an entire working day. For managers and leaders, 67 per cent gain eight hours or more back weekly.
That extra time comes alongside changing skill requirements. About 85 per cent of frontline staff and 92 per cent of leaders say AI has directly altered the skills required in their roles. Robert Xu, Managing Director and Partner at BCG X, noted that local teams have moved past testing the waters to embedding AI into everyday work. He emphasized that the strongest business gains belong to organizations that combine tool deployment with hands-on support.
Looking ahead, 60 per cent of GCC frontline workers and 66 per cent of managers believe AI agents could handle at least half of their current job responsibilities within three years. Despite that rapid trajectory, job anxiety remains low across the region: only 28 per cent of frontline staff and 29 per cent of leaders express concern about losing their positions to the technology. Instead, daily satisfaction is rising, with 69 per cent of frontline employees and 77 per cent of managers reporting increased joy at work since adopting AI.
However, BCG Partner and Director Rami Mourtada cautioned that individual productivity improvements won’t turn into broader business gains unless leadership establishes clear governance and operating models.
