New research suggests senior leaders’ distrust of AI is driving ineffective implementation and widening Australia’s AI skills gap.
Sydney, April 19, 2026–(BUSINESS WIRE)–New research by leading AI analytics platform Amplitude, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPL) reveals a generational divide in how much business leaders and their employees trust artificial intelligence (AI), a trend that could limit the technology’s benefits to Australian businesses and hinder the development of much-needed AI skills across the country.
According to the Amplitude study, only 4% of workers aged 55 to 64 said they would trust AI recommendations more than their own judgment, compared to 31% of workers aged 18 to 24. At the same time, 39% of 18-24 year olds use AI tools every day at work, compared to just 20% of 55-64 year olds. These numbers highlight a clear gap in trust between older professionals who are more likely to take on leadership roles and younger professionals who are more likely to take on more junior positions.
However, even though younger professionals tend to use AI tools more frequently in the workplace, only 13% of respondents aged 18-24 and 9% of respondents aged 25-34 say AI is core to their organization’s work. By comparison, nearly half of respondents (48%) say their organization is getting better at AI but still has room for improvement, and 24% say their organization does not use AI at all.
The lack of direction in AI at the organizational level is reflected in the development of AI skills among professionals, especially the younger generation. Professionals aged 18-24 are more likely to upskill in AI primarily outside of work hours (40%) than during work hours (32%). Only 5% of respondents across all age groups said they improved their AI skills through mentorship or peer learning.
These numbers suggest that although AI tools are being actively used in the work of young professionals, strategic AI guidance from senior levels is lacking. Without a leader-driven AI framework, whether formal or informal, companies can risk a mismatch between the potential of AI tools and the outcomes of their implementation.
“The age gap in trust around AI means that senior decision-makers can inadvertently downplay its potential, limiting the value organizations can derive from these tools,” said Mark Drastis, head of value for Asia Pacific and Japan at Amplitude. “Without strategic adoption, AI is likely to fail to achieve its goals. At a national level, this generational trust gap risks creating a structural recruitment cap that limits skills development and further exacerbates Australia’s existing AI skills shortage.”
The study also revealed:
The use of AI is widespread, but not universal. 27% of respondents use AI tools daily, 33% use them several times a week, while 24% say they use AI tools only occasionally, and 15% say they never use AI at work.
The use of AI is focused on content and information tasks. The most common use cases are writing or editing documents, emails, and reports (44%), summarizing information (38%), and supporting data analysis or reporting (31%).
Advanced AI avoidance for tasks that require judgment: 28% avoided using AI for decision-making or strategic planning, 25% for data analysis or reporting, 22% for coding, debugging or technical work, and 20% for scheduling or meeting preparation.
Here are the top reasons to avoid AI for high-risk tasks: Preferring own judgment/creativity (34%), lack of confidence in accuracy (32%), feeling the output is generic (30%), and risk of disclosure (29%).
Self-rated AI skill level is low. A third (33%) described themselves as beginners or unskilled, another 34% said they were somewhat skilled (able to use AI tools but not an expert), and only 6% considered themselves skilled and ahead of the curve.
There are limits to overall trust in AI output. On a scale of 1 to 5, the average trust score for AI’s output in the workplace is 2.59, with 50% trusting their own judgment more than the AI, compared to 15% trusting the AI more.
The perceived productivity gains are small. While 12% say AI has changed or somewhat helped the way they work (54%), 23% believe AI is adding more work than it is saving them, and 11% say it is actively slowing them down.
Organizational AI maturity remains low: Only 8% say their organization is AI-driven, and 65% spend no time or less than an hour a week learning and experimenting with AI tools.
Expectations regarding career impact vary. More than half (58%) believe that AI will significantly change the demands on their role over the next five years, while 32% do not think AI will change the demands on their job. 16% say AI users already have a career advantage.
Personal use of AI impacts the use of AI in the workplace in the following ways: Almost half (48%) strongly agree or agree that their personal use of AI is influencing their use at work, but only 23% agree or strongly disagree that their personal use of AI is influencing their use at work.
AI creates uneven team dynamics and quiet tension in the workplace. While 45% say AI hasn’t changed their team dynamics, 18% report their co-workers are competing to prove they’re AI-savvy, and 11% say non-users are resentful of those who rely heavily on AI. Tensions are concentrated among younger workers, with only 23-25% of 18-34 year olds reporting no AI-related tension, compared to 64-66% of workers 55 and older.
For more information about the research, please contact amplitude-syd@archetype.co.
Note: All percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number.
About amplitude
Amplitude is the leading AI analytics platform that helps more than 4,700 customers, including Atlassian, Burger King, NBCUniversal, and Square, build better products and digital experiences. Powerful AI agents are built throughout the platform, allowing teams to analyze, test, and optimize user experiences faster than ever before. Ranked #1 in multiple categories in G2’s Winter 2026 Report, Amplitude is a best-in-class solution for product, data, and marketing teams. For more information, please visit amplitude.com.
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