German office workers lead the world in the use of AI agents - but with growing fears of job loss

They independently carry out complex task chains and make decisions: AI agents have long been part of everyday life in many companies. Now a survey shows that office workers in Germany can also score points in a global comparison.

Employees in Germany are among the world leaders in the use of autonomous artificial intelligence and are only behind the USA among the leading industrial nations: almost every second office worker in this country (49 percent) already uses so-called AI agents in their everyday work, as can be seen from the "Work Relationship Index 2026" by the technology group HP. At the same time, however, local employees are facing the upheaval with growing fear of losing their own jobs.

In contrast to classic generative chatbots, AI agents independently carry out complex task chains and make operational decisions. Across all office workplaces, 45 percent of employees use such systems. Technology has long been part of everyday life in management and IT: the proportion among IT decision-makers is 64 percent and among managers it is 63 percent. Overall, the regular use of AI tools provided by employers increased from 32 to 49 percent within a year.

Despite the high level of acceptance, the advance of the systems is accompanied by noticeable skepticism. It is precisely those employees who are already working intensively with AI agents who are most worried about their professional future: 43 percent of them fear being displaced by AI or by colleagues with greater AI expertise. Among employees who exclusively use classic generative text or image AI, this proportion is only 27 percent. 43 percent of agent users also expect that their own job profile will be more difficult to define in the future.

"The use of artificial intelligence is increasing rapidly. Almost half of office workers in Germany now use AI every day," said Adrian Müller, Vice President and Managing Director of HP Germany. "But the results suggest that greater AI competence does not reduce the perceived need for human skills. Rather, there is a growing awareness of the importance of adaptability and continuous learning." Companies are faced with the task of simplifying work through technology and providing employees with targeted training.

The uncertainty is also reflected in a pronounced reluctance to change: 60 percent of those surveyed said that it currently felt too risky for them to give up their current job ("jobhugging"). And: In the younger age group, almost a third are building up a second source of income: 32 percent of those surveyed from Generation Z have a part-time job in order to cushion the risks in their working life.

Meanwhile, general job satisfaction only improved slightly: according to the survey, 21 percent of office workers in Germany report a healthy relationship with work - an increase of two percentage points compared to the previous year. However, 38 percent are still in a critical zone according to the study's criteria.

The global "HP Work Relationship Index" surveyed a total of 19,506 office workers in 15 countries between April 15 and May 20, 2026, including knowledge workers, IT decision makers and executives.