CompTIA estimates a 37% weighted average adoption rate of AI across respondents, but despite the widespread AI adoption, AI skills training strategies remain reactive rather than proactive. Only one in three companies currently mandates AI training for staff, though that figure will change as 85% of respondents are either already providing or planning to provide AI compliance and security training.
The research shows employer demand for AI talent has tripled compared to overall tech hiring, based on CompTIA’s analysis of Lightcast job posting data. Among those not requiring AI training, 46% say they are still in early AI adoption phases, while 37% remain uncertain about the value of AI training.
Workforce impact unclear
Some 38% of companies reported taking staffing actions that they attribute to AI, and among those companies, 48% said that they moved staff to other roles and 36% stated that they hired new employees. Another two-thirds (64%) of companies acknowledged using AI to cover for unpopular business decisions, such as cost-cutting or layoffs.
Junior and mid-level workers are the most vulnerable, according to this study, with 53% and 52% of affected companies reporting impacts at these levels, respectively. This reality raises concerns about talent pipeline development, with 91% of companies worried about AI disrupting early-career opportunities that traditionally feed the workforce pyramid, according to CompTIA.
CompTIA’s research segments companies into three tiers:
- 18% showing low adoption (under 10% of workers using AI)
- 51% in the mid-range (20%-49% usage)
- 29% reporting high adoption rates
Larger firms tend toward top-down AI mandates from the C-suite, while adoption at smaller companies is often bottom-up, driven by power users, according to CompTIA. Companies with higher AI usage rates view the technology more favorably as a productivity tool, suggesting positive experiences breed broader adoption—or conversely, that companies struggling with AI implementations remain skeptical of its value proposition.
