The UK government’s ambitious 50-point AI plan, led by Keir starmer, is being tempered with growing concerns over its economic, societal and environmental impact. While AI holds immense potential to transform industries and accelerate growth, it also presents critical challenges–particularly in workforce readiness and equity.
Coursera’s Job Skills Report 2025 shows that AI is in high demand, and global enrollments for AI-related courses have increased by 866 percent year-over-year. This transformative wave may leave some groups behind as only 28% women enrolled in AI courses last year. This gender gap must be addressed if the UK is to become a global AI superpower and foster inclusivity and equity.
AI-based learning is booming, especially in the UK
Generative AI has become the most popular skill amongst students, employees and job-seekers. Generative AI was ranked the highest skill in the UK. ‘Google AI Essentials,’ which is the most popular Coursera course for British learners (representing 4.2 million out of 162 million Coursera learners), was the most popular Coursera platform. The top 10 UK courses were ‘AI for Everyone,’ ‘Supervised Machine Learning,’ and a combination of both. More than half of GenAI courses are taken by learners from India, Colombia and Mexico. This shows a globalization of AI talent in emerging markets.
Only 28% of AI enrollees are women
Only 28% of Coursera GenAI students are women, despite the fact that AI is a growing field.
This is especially concerning since 79% working women –compared to 58% working menspan size=”font-weight 400 ;”>–are in occupations that are susceptible to disruption by generative AI.
span size=”font weight: 400 ;”>” When you look at today’s tech landscape, it is evident that the gender divide remains pronounced. Marni Baker Stein, Chief content officer at Coursera, said that the gender gap has been a long-standing problem in STEM. Now, it is becoming more apparent in AI. The gender gap in AI and data sciences is significant, with only 22% being female. This has implications for social equity and the effectiveness of AI. Women can’t afford to be left out of the global AI upskilling movement. To close the gender gap, it is crucial that women are encouraged to learn AI skills via educational initiatives and workplace policies.
Quick engineering skills are a must-have for job seekers
Courses like Prompt Engineering Basics and Generative AI – Prompt Engineering Basics are among the top GenAI courses that students and job hunters take. These skills are crucial for using AI tools effectively in diverse professional contexts.
Nikolaz Foucaud is the Managing Director EMEA at Coursera. He commented that the announcement of Starmer’s AI action plan, to “mainline AI into Britain’s veins”, has given serious weight to Britain’s AI aspirations. To make this vision a reality, we need to fundamentally rethink our educational landscape. We also have to reimagine how we will prepare our workforce for a future driven by AI. .”
span size=”font weight: 400 ;”>” While AI is the fastest growing skill for employees, students and job seekers in the UK, and around the world, and Coursera course enrollments in this area have increased by 866% in a year, challenges are developing in relation to gender divides and gaps in knowledge. In 2024, only 28% of all courses were taken by females. This creates an urgent need to address the gendered disparities in the AI workforce. In addition, the lack of policies in higher education has created systemic problems. According to Coursera’s recent independent research, only 48 percent of educators said their university had a policy to manage AI, and almost two thirds (62%) stated that higher education was not prepared to handle AI usage.
spanstyle=”font weight: 400 ;”>”The government’s plan to boost the economy with AI is clear. It’s important to tackle the right skilling and strategy first. There must be a level playing ground for men and women in learning and development, as well as obstacles to students in higher education developing AI-ready skills.
To realize the UK’s AI ambitions, it is essential to make significant investments in education and workforce skills, as well as policy frameworks. Coursera’s Report highlights that the rise of AI and generative technology must be accompanied with an inclusive approach for skill-building. This is especially true for women who are at the greatest risk to fall behind.
The original HR News article AI is a key skill for jobs in 2025, as Keiir Starmer announces an AI action plan was published.
