Personal AI Use Triggers Surge in Workplace Confidence Across Australia and New Zealand – Salesforce Research

New Salesforce research reveals 86% of ANZ knowledge workers use AI personally

88% of respondents say personal AI use has raised their expectations as consumers

Student accommodation provider Scape reports 85% improvement in response speeds with Agentic AI.

SYDNEY, Australia – January 20, 2026 – Salesforce, the world’s #1 AI CRM, today revealed new research that shows a fundamental shift in the Australian and New Zealand (ANZ) workforce: employees are bringing their “at-home” AI habits to the office, driving a surge in workplace confidence and a demand for sophisticated enterprise tools.

The research commissioned by Salesforce and conducted by YouGov surveyed 2,132 ANZ knowledge workers. The findings show that 86 per cent of respondents now use AI in their personal lives. Critically, this personal experimentation is the primary driver for professional adoption, with 74% saying personal use boosted their workplace confidence. 

The rise of the agentic enterprise

The study highlights a transition from simple chatbots to AI Agents — autonomous tools that can take action, not just answer questions.

• 76% of knowledge workers have already engaged with AI agents.
• 95% expect agents to have a positive impact on their roles within the next two years.
• 88% report that their personal AI use has raised their expectations as consumers, demanding quicker service (46%), expecting fewer errors (44%), and more personalised experiences (41%).

Leading PBSA (Purpose-Built Student Accommodation) provider Scape is already seeing the ROI of this shift. By integrating Salesforce’s Agentforce, Scape has automated routine communications and operational summaries.

“When routine tasks drop from hours to minutes, we don’t just gain speed, we gain attention. Used well, AI doesn’t make us more robotic. It makes us more present,” said Anouk Darling, CEO of Scape. “AI now helps us improve consistency and response speeds by up to 85%. It doesn’t make us more robotic; it allows our team to be more present for our residents.”

“Personal use of AI – from travel planning to interior design – has trained me to explore and experiment more. It’s given me the confidence to move from AI happening in the background to something I actively chose to use,” said Heidi Verlaan, Senior Brand and Marketing Manager at Scape. “The more I use it, the clearer I am on where it can help. AI isn’t a magic tool – it fits into my workflow, helping me be more productive and improve my outcomes, while I keep the human layer where it matters.”

Building trust: Safety is non-negotiable

While confidence is high, workers are sending a clear message to leadership: they want guardrails. To feel comfortable using AI agents at work, employees identified four critical requirements:

• Transparency and control (47%)
• Access to expert support (45%) 
• Security and privacy guardrails (43%)
• Easy access to approved tools (40%)

“Employees don’t want to leave AI at the office door,” says Kevin Doyle, RVP, Agentforce & Data 360, Salesforce. “The urgency for business leaders is to move AI out of the sandbox and into the heart of operations. By building on a foundation of trusted, real-time data, companies can finally close the ‘last mile’ of AI and turn potential into measurable ROI.”

Go deeper:

• Learn more about the Agentic Enterprise 
• Learn more about the maturation of AI in the last year
• Catch up on the Scape story with Salesforce
• Find out why Australian consumers are more satisfied with agents 
• Dive into the newly-released AI Fluency Playbook

Methodology:

This study was conducted online in September 2025, gathering data from 1,515 Australians and 617 New Zealanders. All respondents work full-time in “knowledge work” roles (e.g., finance, marketing, IT, law, education, research, healthcare administration, consulting), up to middle management. 

Respondents were sourced from the YouGov panel and incentivised with redeemable points. YouGov may also use accredited partner panels to reach specific demographics. 

After interviewing, the data was weighted by age, gender, and region to align with the latest ABS and Stats NZ population estimates. 

Business sizes are defined as follows: Small (1-19 employees), Medium (20-249 employees), Large (250-499 employees), and Extra Large (500+ employees). 

This study adheres to ISO 20252:2019 standards, under which YouGov is accredited.