The Irish economy could grow by €45 billion over the next decade if businesses fully adopt artificial intelligence, according to research commissioned by Google. This would represent an 8% increase in national output, driven by productivity improvements across two-thirds of the workforce. However, most Irish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are struggling to keep pace with the necessary changes.
Currently, only 6% of Irish SMEs consider AI essential to their operations, a figure projected to climb to 15% within three years. Despite 80% of SME owners recognizing AI as a beneficial development, just 37% actively use it in their daily operations. Over half of these businesses already perceive themselves as falling behind competitors in adopting these technologies.
Several obstacles are delaying broader adoption. Skill shortages, cost concerns, and fear of errors are common barriers, but competitive pressure may be the most critical factor. Ireland’s AI adoption rate aligns with the European Union average but trails behind Northern European leaders such as Denmark, Finland, and Belgium. The risk extends beyond losing ground to global tech centers—it includes falling behind neighboring businesses that have already integrated AI into their daily operations.
Why Irish SMEs Must Act Now
Karen Stolberg, Google’s Vice President of Customer Solutions for the UK and Ireland, highlights that the potential benefits will not materialize without deliberate action. “We are still in the early days of the AI journey, and it is not going to change every shop or every office overnight,” she says. “But the long-term gains are there to be had, and those gains will ultimately be shaped by the individual choices that businesses and Irish SME owners make today.”
Current adoption varies significantly across sectors. McNally Family Farm in North Dublin applies AI to analyze years of operational data, supply chain variables, and weather patterns without requiring a dedicated data analyst. The farm uses tools like Gemini to query its records in natural language, extracting actionable insights from previously untapped data.
OpenHive, an Irish conservation organization protecting the native black honey bee, faced a different challenge. Volunteer beekeepers had been recording field notes manually, a process complicated by protective gloves and difficult to digitize at scale. The group now uses Gemini to photograph handwritten notes and convert them into searchable digital records. “The beekeepers still know the bees,” Stolberg says. “The AI simply removed the administrative burden that sat between the people and the work they actually cared about.”
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AI Transforms Creative, Retail, and Conservation Work
For businesses in the creative and retail space, the impact has been different again. Brands are using Gemini for prototyping and market research, work they would previously have outsourced to agencies. “They used to do that all on Post-it notes,” Stolberg notes.
The Google AI Professional Certificate, a seven-part program based on Google’s AI Essentials course, aims to address the skills gap. It guides participants from foundational knowledge to practical AI integration and includes 90 days of free access to Google AI Pro. Through a partnership with Bank of Ireland, up to 10,000 licenses are now available to Irish SMEs at no cost, distributed via the Think Business SME AI Academy Hub.
How to Start Small with AI Training
For business owners overwhelmed by rapid technological changes, Stolberg offers straightforward advice: begin with small steps. “I have been in tech and at Google for twenty years and I am still learning every single day,” she says. “You certainly don’t need to become an AI expert to benefit from it. Start by committing just one or two hours a week to hands-on learning. Allow yourself the space to get more familiar, learn one new thing, and let the curiosity build from there.”
The initiative also targets industries where AI adoption has lagged. Agriculture, contributing 7% to Ireland’s GDP, ranks among the lowest sectors in AI usage. The certification includes a specialized module for farm management, covering soil analysis and livestock monitoring. OpenHive’s transition from handwritten notes to digital records was facilitated by similar sector-specific tools. “We didn’t need to teach beekeepers coding,” Stolberg states. “We showed them how to adapt their existing workflows using AI assistance.”
Google and Bank of Ireland will assess the program’s impact through participant surveys and measurable outcomes. Certified businesses will share anonymized case studies detailing improvements in efficiency, cost savings, or revenue growth. Early results indicate that even modest efficiency gains can deliver significant benefits. McNally Family Farm, for example, achieved a 15% reduction in fuel costs by using AI to optimize delivery routes—a process that previously required weeks of manual analysis.
