Bullhorn GRID report: Recruitment agencies using AI see stronger growth, faster placements

New data finds AI adoption strongly correlates with revenue growth, with top performers in the UK and Ireland setting new benchmarks for speed and productivity

LONDON – February 25, 2026 – Recruitment agencies in the UK and Ireland using AI at any stage of the recruitment cycle are 4 to 8 times more likely to have grown revenue in 2025. That is according to the 16th annual Global Recruitment Insights and Data (GRID) Industry Trends Report published by Bullhorn, the global leader in software for the staffing and recruitment industry.

The report surveyed nearly 300 recruitment professionals across the UK and Ireland to understand the strategies driving performance in today’s market and the findings make one thing clear: AI is no longer an efficiency experiment. It is a competitive necessity. The revenue gap between agencies meaningfully using AI and those that aren’t is widening fast, leaving late adopters at a growing operational and financial disadvantage.

AI is driving measurable gains

The correlation between AI and revenue growth is clear, and the highest-growth agencies prove it. Ninety-five percent of agencies in the UK&I region that grew revenue by 25 percent or more have AI embedded in their Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

The operational impact is substantial:

• Two-thirds of top-performing agencies report placement times under 10 days
• Most recruitment leaders say AI has improved KPI performance by 11 to 25 percent
• 37 percent of recruiters report AI has made screening 26 to 50 percent faster
• Screening more candidates faster and more time to connect with clients are the top benefits of AI adoption

AI transformation starts at the top

Despite clear performance gains, company-wide AI adoption remains limited. Only 10 percent of agencies from Bullhorn’s global survey have implemented agentic AI across their full workflow, with many citing concerns around data readiness, security, and unclear implementation strategies as barriers to broader adoption. Agencies that move past those barriers share a common trait: confident, prepared leadership. 

With 48 percent of UK&I agencies expecting the economy to improve and 43 percent expecting it to stay the same in 2026, the message is clear: agencies investing in AI are not waiting for market recovery. They are building productivity and growth on their own terms.

To download the full GRID 2026 Industry Trends Report, click here.

About the GRID Industry Trends Report The annual GRID Industry Trends Report is based on data collected from a multiple-choice, online survey of nearly 300 recruitment industry professionals who work across a variety of industries in the UK and Ireland. The survey was conducted between November and December of 2025.   

About Bullhorn
For the past 25 years, Bullhorn has dedicated itself to building industry-leading, cloud-based software for the staffing and recruitment industry. Through partnerships with 10,000 customers globally, Bullhorn has built a vast knowledge base of recruitment best practices and deep domain expertise to help firms scale their businesses. Founder-led and headquartered in Boston, Bullhorn employs 1,400 people across 14 countries focused on delivering an incredible customer experience – its core mission. To learn more, visit www.bullhorn.com or follow Bullhorn on LinkedIn or X.

Media Contact
Heather Youkhana
Director, Global Public Relations and Content
Bullhorn
media@bullhorn.com