Key Findings:
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Explaining code snippets was found to be the most common use of ChatGPT for Developers in the workplace (12%).
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Almost one in ten UK Developers also commonly ask for AI’s help in optimising code (9%) and generating documents (9%).
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Almost a fifth (19%) of Developers are using AI on a regular basis for work. Among all UK Devs, Security Devs had the highest use of AI (31%).
We hope you find this release useful. If you do end up using it, we would appreciate a link to https://www.indusface.com/ who commissioned the data.
Top five tasks UK Developers are using ChatGPT for in 2024
|
Rank |
Tasks |
% of Developers |
|
1 |
Explaining code snippets |
12% |
|
= 2 |
Optimising code |
9% |
|
= 2 |
Generating documents |
9% |
|
4 |
Code snippets examples |
8% |
|
5 |
Simplifying code |
7% |
According to the survey conducted by Indusface, one in eight (12%) UK Developers who use ChatGPT at work are using it to explain code snippets – making it the most common reason to use AI.
By utilising AI for code explanation, Developers are able to better understand the code and its implication at a faster pace which facilitates the development process.
Coming second is optimising code, with almost one in ten (9%) of UK Devs using AI at work for this reason.
Previous studies have shown that AI tools can automate the optimising process to improve the code’s readability, maintainability, testability, and efficiency.
The third task that UK developers are most commonly asking for AI’s assistance with, is to help generate documents (9%).
During a development project, AI can help to save Developers’ time in creating documentation which describes the product/software, making it easier to update the code and to communicate with future users and developers.
The study revealed almost a fifth (19%) of UK Developers admit to using ChatGPT to aid their work on a regular basis.
Whilst almost a third (30%) say they “sometimes”opt to make use of the AI tool, and almost one in five (19%) haven’t done so yet but are keen to try it out.
Despite the apparent popularity amongst UK Devs when it comes to utilising ChatGPT in the workplace, less than a quarter of those surveyed who had previously experimented with the tool (24%) said they didn’t like it or get on with it.
The UK Devs who admit to using ChatGPT the most in the workplace
|
Rank |
Type of Developer |
% of Developers that use AI regularly |
|
1 |
Security Developer |
31% |
|
2 |
Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning Developer |
22% |
|
3 |
DevOps Engineer |
21% |
|
= 4 |
Full-Stack Web Developer |
20% |
|
= 4 |
Backend Web Developer |
20% |
|
= 6 |
Game Developer |
19% |
|
= 6 |
Desktop Software Developer |
19% |
|
= 6 |
Frontend Web Developer |
19% |
|
9 |
Data Scientist |
18% |
|
10 |
Mobile App Developer |
16% |
The study from Indusface found that Security Developers had the highest use of AI in the workplace, with almost a third (30.8%) of them admitting using ChatGPT regularly for work.
Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning Developers came second, with over one in five (22%) of them admitting using ChatGPT for work purposes. This was closely followed by DevOps Engineers (21%).
As AI is seen as a great tool to create more immersive experiences in games, 19% of Game Developers are turning to ChatGPT for assistance in the workplace.
Please see the full survey results here on Onedrive.
Venky Sundar, Founder and President of Indusface commented on the important of AI for developers and its security risk to be prevented:
“From finding bugs to generating code tests, it’s no secret that AI can aid developers within the workplace in a variety of different ways. It improves Developers’ productivity by carrying out repetitive tasks and saving time in spotting coding errors. It can also be used in predictive analysis which may remind developers of possible overloads in the future, thus optimising software process and user experience.
“While the use of ChatGPT could hugely increase Developers productivity, users also need to be aware of its cyber security concerns. Since Developers need to input software codes or relevant information into ChatGPT before it could optimise or generate documentation, this could be a risk of leaking confidential company data.
“As such, we’d recommend not inputting any confidential information such as client data or internal sensitive data into ChatGPT, as such data can be used in the AI tool’s next responses. Instead, you could ask ChatGPT to write content from scratch without risking your company’s data security.”
Methodology:
1. Indusface conducted a UK-based survey of 2,000 respondents to find out the use of AI for developers.
2. To do this, a UK-based survey was carried out, asking respondents questions such as whether they use ChatGPT at work, what tasks would you be most inclined to use ChatGPT for?,etc.
3. An aggregation of the survey results from each type of developer was then completed, to calculate the percentage of respondents’ answers to each question.
4. Further research was carried out on authoritative sites, such as
5. The survey was conducted in December 2023 and is correct as of then.
