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Eunice Xu

Iris Deng

The majority of Hong Kong’s white-collar workers are embracing artificial intelligence in their daily work, but executives’ reluctance to use the technology risks slowing enterprise-wide adoption, according to a survey by McKinsey & Company.
Nearly 70 per cent of white-collar workers in Hong Kong use AI, with more than 90 per cent engaging with the tools at least once a day, according to findings from the consulting firm’s local survey released on Wednesday.
Most workers use AI for specific tasks, and fewer than 25 per cent use AI to execute an entire workflow, according to the survey.
The gap “really slows the enterprise adoption of AI, because ultimately employees need to see reinforcing behaviours from their leaders to change”, said Arthur Shek, managing partner of McKinsey & Company’s Hong Kong office.
While personal AI usage in Hong Kong ranks among the highest globally, corporate adoption lags because of a lack of clear strategies, infrastructure and data processes, he added.
Shek said the complexity of transformation lies not only in the tools, but also in mindset, incentives and organisational design.
“Oftentimes the effort involved in changing these factors is several times greater than the technology investment,” he said.

AI has been reshaping work and daily life with its ability to generate content and automate workflows, and Hong Kong has been pushing for wider uptake, with plans to embed AI in at least 200 public service procedures by the end of 2027.
In McKinsey’s latest survey of 4,521 professionals and students, 88 per cent of respondents said AI tools had already boosted their productivity.
While more than 90 per cent of Hongkongers were comfortable using AI to assist with tasks, only 40 per cent trusted the technology to automate entire workflows, the survey found.
Respondents across almost all industries cited data privacy and cybersecurity as their top concerns, alongside barriers such as unclear use cases, limited access and insufficient training.
The disconnect between leadership and employees is likely to become more acute as Hong Kong students – the future workforce – embraced the technology and expected AI to be integrated into their jobs, McKinsey said.
“Companies that don’t redesign their talent strategies will struggle to attract and retain this next generation,” said McKinsey partner Jackey Yu.


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Just 14 per cent of Hong Kong executives use AI frequently, as companies face strategy, data and training barriers to wider adoption


Just 14 per cent of Hong Kong executives use AI frequently, as companies face strategy, data and training barriers to wider adoption.


Hong Kong executives trail employees in AI adoption: McKinsey

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Just 14 per cent of Hong Kong executives use AI frequently, as companies face strategy, data and training barriers to wider adoption

Just 14 per cent of Hong Kong executives use AI frequently, as companies face strategy, data and training barriers to wider adoption