The number of people in the UK lacking the most basic digital skills is in the millions; a figure AI risks heightening. For businesses, the message is clear: help bridge the digital literacy divide or risk deepening inequality, and shrinking your talent pool and consumer reach.
Despite digital skills underpinning much of the UK economy, 8.5 million adults in the UK lack basic digital skills. While the impact is felt most by those living in poverty, older people, and those with physical or mental disabilities, the effects extend far beyond these groups.
Those outside of traditionally marginalised groups are struggling with a lack of confidence or basic skills, making everyday tools feel frustrating, or even impossible, to use. In fact, the Good Things’ latest state of the Digital Nation survey found that 21% of people say that beyond the challenges of access and affordability, they feel “left behind by technology”.
This has serious implications for businesses. A digitally excluded population means a smaller talent pool, reduced productivity, and shrinking consumer reach. Without a workforce that can adapt to new technologies, there’s a real risk that businesses fall behind.
Meanwhile, if businesses’ products and services aren’t designed with accessibility in mind, there’s also the risk of alienating large segments of the population – reducing market share and brand trust. And the acceleration towards AI risks deepening this divide.
The impact of AI on digital exclusion
Many are aware of AI’s capabilities when it comes to improving business. But – because AI can add complexity to interactions if not carefully designed and implemented – it also risks deepening digital exclusion for those already struggling.
Take the example of AI in customer service. Chatbots are awash across sectors like banking and retail. But for customers with limited digital confidence, these tools can be confusing or inaccessible, leading to frustration, dropped transactions and a breakdown in long-term trust.
We also have the issue of bias. Most AI systems are trained on data pulled from the internet – data that tends to skew towards the perspectives of Western, white, English-speaking men. This means AI can unintentionally overlook or misrepresent marginalised groups, reinforcing existing inequalities. For businesses, this could mean tone-deaf campaigns, exclusionary hiring tools, or products that simply don’t work for large parts of their audience.
Business strategies to close the digital divide
The responsibility here doesn’t fall on AI itself – it falls on the people and businesses deploying it. With this in mind, consider the following strategies:
- Prioritise inclusive research from the outset: Robust user research has the power to amplify the voices of marginalised and digitally excluded groups, ensuring that services are ethical, effective and usable for all. Prioritising their work helps uncover the real-world challenges people face, not just assumptions based on the experiences of digital natives. We also need to continue validating digital services at every stage of development, using insights to shape and test every decision.
- Tackle AI bias: Understand where data sets come from and actively work to acknowledge, avoid or counterbalance skewed inputs. This is also an opportunity to audit internal policies. Is inclusion explicitly addressed in your AI strategy? Is your team trained to spot risks around bias or exclusion?
- Apply the MASTA framework to AI inclusion:
– Motivation: Whether it’s simplifying admin tasks or offering more personalised experiences, users must understand what’s in it for them. For businesses, that means clearly communicating the value of AI tools to both customers and employees. Consider weaving AI literacy into onboarding, upskilling, and internal comms to ensure your team feels empowered, not intimidated, by new technologies.
– Access: For AI technologies to work, they quite often need reliable internet, modern devices, and supporting infrastructure. Without access to these things, existing digital divides will only deepen. If your services require tech people can’t afford or don’t have, you risk excluding them. Consider this when designing products and services.
– Security: Security is a big barrier to AI adoption. Businesses should not only prioritise security by design but also offer plain-language guidance and support around topics like data use and online safety – for both consumers and staff.
– Trust: If people don’t trust that AI is fair and unbiased, they’ll avoid it – so we need businesses to prioritise explainability and fairness in AI systems, and be proactive in communicating how data is collected, processed and protected.
– Anxiety: Even the most tech-savvy among us can crumble under pressure. Poor design, jargon-heavy instructions, or unclear interfaces are all major stress triggers. The answer isn’t just more training, but better design. Think clear prompts, confirmation messages, helpful defaults, and simple language.
Bridging the digital divide isn’t just about doing the right thing, it’s about recognising that no business thrives in a society where millions are left behind.
