Aussie Workers Embrace AI at Home, Demand Workplace Rules

Most Australian workers are honing artificial intelligence skills on their own time but more access, greater control and strict rules might be needed to boost its adoption in workplaces. Software firm Salesforce on Tuesday released the findings from a study of more than 2000 workers which also found personal AI use significantly boosted employees' trust in the technology. The research comes days after Microsoft signed an agreement with the Australian Council of Trade Unions over the design of AI tools and rules, and a month after the government released a National AI Plan to encourage investment in the technology. The Salesforce study, conducted by YouGov, surveyed 2132 knowledge workers in Australia and New Zealand across fields including law, finance, marketing, technology, research and consulting. More than four in every five workers (86 per cent) said they used AI in their personal lives, and most (71 per cent) said their experiences at home had improved their trust in AI at work. Many knowledge workers had also experimented with AI agents that performed several tasks (76 per cent), the study found, and most expected the technology to positively affect their work within two years. Workers' experience with AI tools did not mean they would place blind trust in its outcomes, Salesforce regional vice-president Kevin Doyle said, but it made them more likely to understand the software's limitations. "The research tells us right now for knowledge workers, the best experience they're having with AI is in their personal lives and they're ready for their professional life to catch up," he told AAP. "Personal experimentation is boosting their confidence because when they do it in their personal lives ... they can test things. If it doesn't work, they understand why (and) they understand the hallucinations." While personal AI use boosted confidence, almost half of the workers surveyed said they wanted greater transparency and control of AI tools in the workplace (47 per cent) and strict rules about security and privacy (43 per cent). "There are more guardrails required and knowledge workers told us that they're looking to leadership to put them in place and put them in place now," Mr Doyle said. "Knowledge workers had a lot of patience over 2024 and 2025 but 2026 is the year that AI needs to graduate and become available. Heidi Verlaan, brand manager for student accommodation provider Scape, said she started using AI at home after taking a course in the technology for work. While she uses ChatGPT to plan her weekends, she uses Microsoft Copilot to manage work meetings and refine communications.