Nearly two-thirds of jobs in the Irish labour market are exposed to artificial intelligence, new analysis reveals.
Ireland’s exposure marginally outpaces the average among advanced economies.
The reports published by the Department of Finance and the Department of Enterprise, Trade, and Employment found 63 percent of Irish jobs are exposed to AI.
Of these, 30 percent are at risk of being substituted by AI, while the remaining 33 percent are expected to see the technology complement their work through enhanced productivity.
Using 2021 data, the reports highlight a gender disparity in AI exposure.
Women, who are predominantly employed in highly exposed administrative or customer service roles, face higher exposure to AI than men.
Men are more likely to hold agricultural or construction-related jobs, which are relatively less affected by AI.
Sector-specific analysis indicates that the Financial and Insurance and Information and Communication sectors are the most exposed to AI, impacting 97 and 94 percent of employees respectively.
Conversely, the Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing sector is the least exposed.
The reports suggest that AI’s impact will not necessarily result in job losses in highly exposed sectors.
Instead, there will likely be a “redeployment of labour from low complementarity to high complementarity roles.”
The emphasis will be on providing tailored training to equip workers with the skills to use AI as a supporting technology within their current roles or to transition to more viable positions.
Regionally, urban areas, particularly Dublin, have more employees in AI-exposed roles (71 percent) than rural areas.
Younger workers are slightly more exposed to AI than older workers, with a greater proportion employed in “at-risk” and “high-gain” roles.
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Minister of Finance Michael McGrath said: “The analysis published today is very timely.”
“It is clear that AI has the potential to have very positive transformative effects, improving living standards and our quality of life generally.
“However, we know from historical experience that technological advancement can sometimes cause labour market disruption.”
The reports also note that, given the positive correlation between AI exposure and salary, higher-income individuals could benefit the most from increased AI adoption.
Additionally, the analysis points to potential impacts on tax and spending, highlighting the need to upskill workers in negatively exposed groups.
