According to the survey, 44% of UK executives identified international expansion as the most significant issue caused by language barriers. This compares to 41% of executives in Germany, 37% in the US, 30% in the Netherlands, and just 24% in France.

This is according to findings from DeepL, a global Language AI company in its whitepaper, "The language revolution: how AI improves the way businesses communicate". The report explores the intersection of language and AI in business, covering critical topics ranging from global corporate AI adoption trends, to the financial impact of poor communication on international businesses, and the real-world impact and value of Language AI tools.

David-Parry Jones, Chief Revenue Officer at DeepL comments: “While English remains the dominant language of international business, fluency is limited to just 20% of the global population. This report highlights a crucial reality: relying solely on English for external communications can restrict international growth for UK companies. In response, UK businesses are increasingly embracing AI to overcome these barriers. Our research shows that 72% plan to integrate AI into daily operations, with 25% specifically aiming to use it for tasks like translation by 2025.”

The report outlines that whilst international expansion is by far the biggest challenge created by language barriers for UK businesses, other external issues have arisen like serving customers from other markets (28%). Internal communication is also a challenge for nearly one in four UK organisations (22%).

Other report highlights include:

• UK companies are investing in AI for translation purposes: of those UK leaders that plan to invest in AI this year, the most likely use case was to roll out AI for specialised tasks like translation. As UK leaders recognise the urgent need to leverage language for global expansion, AI is helping to bridge this gap
• Specialised AI tools like DeepL are combatting top business communication challenges: language AI is unlocking significant growth and efficiency for global businesses, enabling them to harness language as a strategic asset to better tap into the power of communication and collaboration both internally and externally – all while driving deeper connections and expanding global reach. Businesses are merging Language AI solutions with human expertise and oversight to solve their urgent communication issues and minimise the challenges associated with cross-cultural communication – particularly in highly regulated industries with high-stakes communications, like legal and manufacturing. This includes utilising Language AI alongside external translation agencies (32%) and supporting in-house translation teams with AI (31%), to embedding AI into key products (26%)
• Internal communication is a growing priority in European markets: internal language barriers are leaving global companies struggling to effectively and efficiently move business forward. In particular, the Netherlands (31%) and France (25%) report the highest pressure to support communication between teams speaking different languages, highlighting how linguistic diversity impacts both customer engagement and workplace collaboration. DeepL's findings are aligned with a 2024 Forbes study that found half of all knowledge workers say they are hampered by communication challenges

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