Employee resistance or delay in adopting artificial intelligence (AI) is creating a growing divide in the UAE workplace, an Emirati AI expert has warned, stressing that the technology is no longer a luxury but a fundamental requirement for career survival.
Abdulaziz Al Shamsi, a PhD researcher in AI at the University of Manchester and co-founder of Abu Dhabi-based AI Diverge, noted that a “growing and tangible gap” is emerging between employees who effectively use AI tools and those who remain disconnected from them.
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“When the country moves with this magnitude and speed, knowing the basics of artificial intelligence becomes an essential skill for any employee, regardless of their specialisation,” Al Shamsi told Khaleej Times. “Just as computer literacy was two decades ago, it is no longer an additional advantage, but rather a part of the job requirements themselves.”
The warning comes as the UAE accelerates its push towards becoming the world’s first government to operate autonomous systems on a massive scale.
In April 2026, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced a national plan to transition 50 per cent of federal government sectors, services, and operations to Agentic AI systems within two years.
To support this transition, the UAE has launched the largest training programme in its history, aiming to upskill 80,000 government employees from ministers and senior officials to new hires on Agentic AI tools.
A universal tool, but impact varies
Al Shamsi, whose company specialises in designing and building Agentic AI systems that plan, make decisions, and execute tasks semi-autonomously for government and private entities, explained that AI is a “cross-sectional tool” applicable across almost all fields.
However, the immediate impact varies by profession:
• Office and knowledge workers: For roles in writing, analysis, customer service, HR, and marketing, the benefits are “direct and quickly visible”.
• Technical and research roles: AI has shifted from being a mere assistive tool to becoming an integral part of the core work system.
• Field and physical jobs: While daily use is currently lower, the impact is steadily rising alongside advancements in robotics and automation.
“There is no field completely immune from the impact of this technology, but the speed and depth of the impact differ according to the nature of the work,” he added.
Boosting productivity, not replacing humans
Addressing fears of job displacement, Al Shamsi clarified that AI is designed to augment human capabilities rather than replace them.
He outlined several practical applications that can instantly boost employee productivity:
• Summarising and analysing lengthy documents and reports in minutes instead of hours.
• Drafting official correspondence, presentations, and initial content outlines.
• Automating repetitive, routine tasks such as data organisation and answering common queries.
• Supporting decision-making by analysing massive datasets and extracting patterns.
• Brainstorming and initial project planning, where the AI acts as a “thinking partner”
“The core idea is that AI mostly does not replace the employee; rather, it saves the time consumed in preparatory tasks, allowing them to focus on what requires human judgement and field experience,” he said.
Proceed with caution
Despite the clear advantages, Al Shamsi urged employees to exercise caution when integrating AI into their daily workflows. He highlighted four critical areas of concern:
1. Data Privacy: Employees must verify where inputted data is stored, especially sensitive workplace information, to prevent accidental leaks of corporate or government data.
2. Human Oversight: AI tools can produce inaccurate information with high confidence. Human review remains essential, particularly for critical decisions or officially published data.
3. Internal Policies: Employees must adhere to their organisation’s specific guidelines regarding permitted external AI tools.
4. Over-reliance: AI should remain an assistant, not a total replacement for critical thinking, to prevent the erosion of an employee’s analytical and evaluation skills over time.
It’s not too late to start
For those feeling overwhelmed by the rapid pace of technological change, Al Shamsi offered reassuring advice to start small.
“My main advice is to start with direct practical experience. This is a field mastered more by practice than by theoretical reading alone,” he said. “I encourage understanding ‘when’ and ‘when not’ to use these tools in a work context, not just ‘how’ to use them technically.”
He suggested tackling small, specific tasks daily rather than attempting to learn everything at once.
“The learning curve in this field is still relatively flexible for those who start now with seriousness and commitment,” Al Shamsi noted. “The real difference is not in ‘when you started’, but rather in ‘whether you actually started and persisted.’”
Source: Khaleej Times