Thursday, October 30th, 2025
Recent research from global growth consultancy Think & Grow has revealed that a significant number of the UK’s top tech companies have appointed advisers with Artificial Intelligence (AI) expertise to their boards. According to the research, four in ten (40%) of the FTSE 350’s largest tech companies have AI expertise on their boards, generating an average revenue of £6.8 billion. In comparison, companies without AI knowledge average only £953 million in revenue.
However, the research also shows that UK tech scale-ups are at risk of failing to reach their growth potential due to a lack of AI experts on their boards. Only a third (32%) of the UK’s fastest-growing technology scale-ups have AI expertise on their boards, compared to 40% of the largest tech companies on the FTSE 350 index.
The correlation between AI expertise and revenue is evident, as half (50%) of UK tech scale-ups with annual revenue greater than £50 million have AI expertise on their boards, while only 15% of companies with revenue below that level do.
The efforts to appoint AI expertise to boards have increased in recent years as companies recognize the need to upskill their boards and leverage growth opportunities. The research also reveals that the average tenure of board directors with AI expertise is three years, compared to five years for all board directors.
Despite the clear investor appetite for AI, with UK AI companies securing £2.9 billion in private investment in 2024, 13% of technology companies have no plans to appoint AI expertise to their boards in the next year.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and HM Treasury have reported that UK AI companies secured £2.9 billion in private investment in 2024, with average deals worth £5.9 million. These companies also contribute £11.8 billion to the UK’s economy.
According to Jonathan Jeffries, Co-Founder of Think & Grow, companies without AI expertise on their boards risk losing ground to competitors and hindering their growth potential. He explains that AI is transforming business and society, and ambitious tech companies will not reach their full potential if they do not embrace it.
The research findings are part of an upcoming report from Think & Grow titled “Breaking & Remaking the Next Generation of High Impact Boards,” set to be published in November. Think & Grow is a global growth consultancy that supports high-growth tech companies through today’s unpredictable and competitive market realities. It has successfully helped some of the tech industry’s most innovative companies, including Spotify, Stripe, Square, Dropbox, Peloton, Datadog, Canva, and Etsy.
About Think & Grow:
Think & Grow is a global growth consultancy based in Sydney, Australia, with operations in the UK, the US, Singapore, and Dubai. It offers growth strategies and executive search services to help businesses attract top talent, build innovative cultures, and scale effectively. With over 11 years of experience, Think & Grow has supported over 650 companies and filled over 1,000 positions at fast-growth tech companies. They have also held over 1,000 growth workshops in 22 countries.
Notes to editors:
The research was conducted by independent research agency Opinium, which surveyed 400 board members or senior decision-makers in UK and US technology companies with up to 500 employees between August 14th and September 22nd, 2025.
Methodology:
The research was based on an analysis of the board composition of the UK’s 25 fastest-growing technology scale-ups headquartered in the UK (according to the Sifted 100) and the 25 largest tech companies currently listed on the UK’s FTSE 350 index based on market capitalization.