“Economically significant” – AI boosts productivity
AI increases productivity in companies and leads to higher salaries. Jobs will likely remain. But not everyone benefits.
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The use of Artificial Intelligence increases the productivity of companies within the EU by around four percent. This is suggested by a working paper by the European Investment Bank (EIB). While this is "economically significant," it is a smaller increase than other scenarios had predicted.
Contrary to widespread fears, no job losses due to AI could be identified. Employees in companies using AI even benefit from higher wages in some cases. The decisive factor here is not just the purchase of the software, but particularly investments in corresponding training and further education of the staff.
It is not yet possible to predict whether these developments will continue in the long term. The researchers emphasize that this could be a snapshot that may not last.
For their analysis, the bank's researchers compared over 12,000 non-financial companies in the EU with 800 comparable US companies over a period of five years and analyzed them using the instrumental variables method. This is intended not only to ensure representativeness but also to identify AI as the clear reason for increased productivity.
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AI also causes inequality
However, not all EU states benefit from this productivity increase, the researchers explain. While companies in economically more developed countries, such as Sweden or Germany, often rely on AI, economically less developed countries are left behind. This gap in the AI readiness index has been growing, especially since 2023.
This is also evident among European companies. According to the findings, large and medium-sized companies in particular benefit from the productivity increase. Small companies in the EU with fewer than 50 employees often lack the resources and expertise to implement AI to the required extent.
The EU should now act
The EU should financially support small companies in reaching the necessary scale for AI implementation, the authors therefore recommend as a course of action for the EU. To achieve this, European financial markets must be strengthened. In addition to investments in AI software and licenses, it is also important to promote training and courses on how to use AI.
More productivity in the USA too
A few days ago, the director of the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, Erik Brynjolfsson, reported that a productivity boom in the USA of a similar magnitude can be explained by AI. Annual national productivity growth there doubled in 2025 compared to the previous ten years, reaching 2.7 percent. The reason for this is the emerging effects of investments in the AI market.
(mki)
