Why learn AI skills? What the Irish data shows

Is learning AI worth it if you work in Ireland?

Yes, for most people in work, and mostly for the job you already have rather than a new career. Since 2023, AI has spread well beyond big firms, and about one in five people in Ireland now use generative AI tools for work.

Job adverts point the same way. The Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN), which advises the Government on skills, says AI was mentioned in 4% to 6% of Irish job postings from 2019 to 2023, and that share has since doubled.

The catch: the EGFSN doesn’t expect AI to cut jobs overall. Its 2022 report put it plainly: “Net job losses are not expected as a result of the adoption of AI, but many jobs will change as certain tasks are taken over by AI.” So the skill that pays off is using AI tools in your own job and checking their output before you rely on it.

How many Irish businesses use AI?

About one in five businesses with 10 or more staff, up from fewer than one in ten in 2023. The CSO’s figure was flat at 8% in 2021 and 2023, then rose to 15.2% in 2024 and 20.2% in 2025.

Your employer’s size makes a big difference. Almost six in ten large Irish businesses used AI in 2025, against fewer than one in five small ones. If you work for a small firm, AI skills are less likely to be expected of you today, and more likely to set you apart.

The most common use in 2025 was business administration, at 7.8% of businesses. Marketing or sales, ICT services and research or innovation followed, each at 5.4%. If your job involves admin, reports or customer emails, that’s where you’re most likely to meet AI first.

Do people in Ireland already use AI tools at work?

About one in five do, which is more than the EU average. In 2025, 22.44% of people in Ireland used a generative AI tool for work, against 15.36% across the EU, according to Eurostat.

If you’re applying for an office job, assume the team already uses tools like these. Being able to show how you’d use one, and how you’d check what it gives you, is a practical point in your favour at interview.

Irish businesses, on the other hand, use AI at about the EU rate. On Eurostat’s EU-wide measure, which differs slightly from the CSO’s, 19.64% of Irish businesses used AI in 2025, against 19.95% across the EU.

Are AI skills in demand in Irish jobs?

Yes, and faster here than in neighbouring countries. The EGFSN’s 2026 note on the Irish labour market finds that “Ireland is generating AI-related jobs at 2 to 3 times the pace of neighbouring countries”.

Employers say skills are what hold them back. In Skillnet Ireland’s survey of 500 businesses for Ireland’s Talent Landscape 2025, 73% “cited a current lack of necessary skills as the greatest barrier to integrating AI into their business”. If your employer is one of them, a short course you take yourself fills a gap they’ve already named.

If you’re thinking about a technical career, the shortage is real. The EGFSN’s September 2026 report projects demand for digital specialists in Ireland to rise from about 168,800 in 2025 to over 215,000 by 2030, with annual shortages of about 5,500 by then, or up to 7,700 if growth is high.

Do AI skills pay more in Ireland?

Nobody publishes an official Irish figure. The CSO and the EGFSN track AI use and job postings, not the pay attached to AI skills.

The closest guide is cross-market research. Lightcast, a labour-market data company, analysed over 1.3 billion job postings. In July 2025 it reported that postings asking for AI skills offered 28% higher salaries. The press release doesn’t say which countries the postings come from and gives no Irish breakdown, so read it as a sign of what employers value, not a promise of what a course will earn you.

Lightcast also found that 51% of job postings asking for AI skills were outside IT and computer science in 2024. That’s the more useful number if you don’t work in tech: employers are asking for AI skills in ordinary jobs.

Which AI skills do you need if you don’t work in tech?

Practical AI literacy: giving AI tools clear instructions and checking their answers before you use them. The EGFSN’s 2022 report found that everyone, “regardless of whether they work in tech or not, will need some level of knowledge and understanding of AI”.

The Government’s National AI Strategy Refresh 2024 commits to making AI literacy part of Ireland’s Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy. If your employer is planning AI training because of the EU AI Act, the guide to AI literacy training under the EU AI Act explains what the law asks of employers.

Where should you start learning AI skills?

Start free, and use what you learn on a real task from your own job that same week. Pay only if you need an award or a set timetable.

If you only do one course, take AI Fluency: Framework & Foundations from University College Cork and Anthropic. It’s free, takes four hours and ends with a digital badge, and it’s built around giving AI clear instructions and judging what comes back. The catch: it teaches working with AI in general rather than a particular tool you use at work.

• For a shorter Irish introduction: AI for You from CeADAR, Ireland’s national AI centre, takes about two hours and also covers the EU AI Act.
• To compare more free options: the list of free AI courses sets them side by side by certificate and time.
• If AI is new to you: the AI courses for beginners page lists courses that assume no background.
• If you want an award: funded AI training in Ireland explains Springboard+ and Skillnet Ireland, which can cut the fee for longer courses.
• If you’re unsure whether to pay: read are free AI courses worth it first.

All figures checked on 16 October 2026.