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Artificial intelligence could become a “small business superpower” by giving smaller firms capabilities they previously lacked, former UK prime minister Rishi Sunak argues. AI can help a small company research markets, produce content, handle routine administration and respond to customers without adding equivalent headcount. Its advantage over a large organisation is not guaranteed, however: it depends on choosing useful workflows, training staff, protecting data and improving systems through repeated testing.
What Rishi Sunak said about AI and small businesses
In an Enterprise Nation article published on 9 June 2026, Sunak wrote: “I am convinced that AI can be the small business superpower. Enabling you to achieve things that you never had the resources or the manpower to do before.”
His argument is organisational rather than a claim that every small business will outperform every large company. Large organisations often have multiple approval layers, established processes and slower technology decisions. A smaller firm can identify a promising use, approve it quickly and change direction without a large sunk investment.
Sunak also warned: “If SMEs don’t adopt, we’ll end up with a K-shaped economy, with SMEs either being taken over by big businesses or losing market share to them.” In his view, early, practical adoption could let a small firm close capability gaps before larger competitors use the same tools at scale. He added that AI could help an SME “leap ahead of big businesses, many of whom won’t be as nimble as you.”
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What the available UK evidence shows
The adoption opportunity remains uneven. Enterprise Nation research cited by Sunak found that 21% of its audience were using AI regularly. That percentage describes Enterprise Nation’s research audience, not all UK small and medium-sized businesses.
ITPro reported 2026 Dell Technologies research in which 66% of UK small and medium-sized businesses viewed AI as a “route to growth” and 56% said it could provide a competitive advantage. An “AI front runner” group representing about 7% of surveyed firms reported freeing six or more hours each week with AI.
Those figures indicate interest and reported time savings, not a controlled test showing that SMEs universally beat larger companies. ITPro did not provide a full public methodology on the page reporting the Dell research, so the results should be treated as survey evidence rather than a performance guarantee.
Why agility can matter more than company size
| Comparison | Potential small-business advantage | What still has to be solved |
|---|---|---|
| Decision speed | Owners or small leadership teams can approve a focused experiment quickly. | Fast approval is useful only when the problem and success measure are clear. |
| Approval bureaucracy | Fewer internal handoffs can shorten the path from idea to working tool. | Basic privacy, security and legal checks cannot be skipped. |
| Use-case clarity | A firm can target one costly bottleneck, such as quoting or customer enquiries. | Unfocused experimentation creates tools nobody uses. |
| Employee readiness | Training can be tailored to a small team’s actual jobs. | Staff need guidance on checking outputs and handling confidential data. |
| Administrative hours | Automation can return time to customer service, creativity and growth. | Time saved must be measured against setup and review time. |
| Iteration | A small firm can revise a workflow without a major legacy investment. | Each revision should be tested for accuracy and business impact. |
Brian Horsburgh, UK small business country manager at Dell Technologies, said AI can “take some of that work off their plate, giving them more time to focus on customers, creativity, and growth.” That benefit is most credible where AI removes repeatable work while a person remains responsible for important decisions.
Where an SME can use AI first
Customer and sales operations
AI can draft replies to common enquiries, summarise calls, classify incoming leads and prepare first drafts of proposals. A staff member should review facts, prices, commitments and tone before anything goes to a customer.
Marketing and content
A small team can use AI to turn a product brief into alternative headlines, social posts, email drafts or an editorial outline. Human review is needed for claims, brand voice, accessibility and originality.
Internal administration
Meeting summaries, document search, routine spreadsheet explanations and first-pass policy documents are suitable starting points when the source material is accurate and access is restricted to authorised users.
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AI can organise customer feedback, compare options and surface patterns for a manager to investigate. It should support judgement rather than silently making hiring, financial or safety-critical decisions.
How to start without overcommitting
- Choose one bottleneck. Pick a task that consumes measurable time each week or delays customers. Avoid launching an organisation-wide programme before a useful workflow is proven.
- Set a baseline. Record current handling time, error rates, backlog or response time. Without a baseline, a claimed productivity gain cannot be checked.
- Define the safe boundary. Decide what data may be entered, who can access outputs and which decisions require human approval. Exclude confidential information unless the chosen service and company policy permit it.
- Involve the people doing the work. Employees know the exceptions that a demonstration often misses. Their feedback also determines whether a tool becomes part of daily work.
- Train for verification. Staff should learn to check invented facts, missing context, arithmetic, sources and inappropriate wording before using an output.
- Run a small pilot. Test the workflow with a limited group and a defined period. Compare the result with the baseline, including rework and review time.
- Iterate or stop. Keep the use case if it improves the chosen measure safely; change the process if it does not. Sunak’s practical advice is reinforced by Horsburgh, who said the number-one advice from businesses of all sizes was to “start small and iterate.”
Leadership and culture determine the result
The strongest reported AI front runners combine leadership priority, defined use cases and an AI-friendly culture. Buying access alone will not create an advantage. Leaders need to explain which work AI is meant to improve, give employees time to learn it and establish a route for reporting errors or unsafe outputs.
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Sunak’s recent interest follows advisory work with Anthropic, Microsoft and Goldman Sachs. The official Murty Sunak activities page records his 2 April 2026 appearance in Birmingham at Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses UK, focused on AI and British small business. This is separate from his 18 March 2024 Business Connect speech, when he described the UK as having five and a half million small businesses and discussed tax, red tape, finance and apprenticeships rather than AI specifically.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What could prevent a competitive edge
- Wrong problem: automating a low-value task can produce activity without growth.
- Unverified output: plausible but incorrect text can create customer, regulatory or financial risk.
- Weak adoption: a tool that adds steps or ignores staff expertise will not deliver sustained savings.
- Data exposure: uploading personal, confidential or commercially sensitive information without clear controls can create security and compliance problems.
- No measurement: time saved in one step may disappear through correction, approval or duplication elsewhere.
Bottom line for small-business owners
Sunak’s “small business superpower” description is a credible strategy, not a universal finding. A small firm can gain ground when it applies AI to a specific bottleneck, makes decisions quickly, equips employees to verify results and keeps improving the workflow. The reported UK survey numbers show substantial interest but also a large adoption gap, leaving room for capable early movers while making disciplined implementation more important than enthusiasm alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Rishi Sunak claim that AI will make every small business outperform large companies?
No. He argued that AI can help SMEs move faster and perform work they previously lacked resources or manpower to do. The claim depends on implementation and does not establish universal outperformance.
What percentage of UK SMBs saw AI as a route to growth?
ITPro reported Dell Technologies research finding that 66% of surveyed UK SMBs viewed AI as a route to growth, while 56% said it could provide a competitive advantage.
How much time did the reported AI front runners save?
The group, representing about 7% of surveyed firms, reported freeing six or more hours each week.
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