Despite organizations lagging in GenAI integration compared to other parts of the world, Latin American professionals have significant optimism on how the technology will change their work
While the recent 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report, from the Thomson Reuters Institute (TRI), explores the challenges and opportunities that professional services firms — such as those in the legal; tax, audit & accounting; and risk, fraud & compliance industries — face today regarding generative AI (GenAI), relatively few studies have explored the impact specifically in Latin America.
Indeed, some economists have found that GenAI has the potential to boost productivity in the LatAm region by transforming jobs and industries, but inadequate infrastructure and digital access are problems that hinder these gains. Others have stated that the region’s large informal sector makes the adoption of new AI technologies harder due to limited access to financial and legal opportunities, and the struggle to attract investment.
The TRI survey report complements the few existing studies on GenAI and its impact on Latin America, enabling us to examine the opinions of professionals in Latin America on GenAI and contrast these views with those of their contemporaries around the globe.
Latin America’s strong optimism for GenAI
A striking 56% of LatAm respondents to the TRI survey report expressed excitement about the future of GenAI in their industries, a figure that significantly surpasses the 27% of global respondents sharing this feeling. Additionally, another 22% of LatAm respondents indicated further positive sentiment towards GenAI, saying they feel hopeful about it. These findings reveal the region’s enthusiasm to embrace technological advancements and leverage them to promote growth and innovation within their respective industries.
When considering the application of GenAI in professional services work, LatAm respondents showed remarkable optimism. An impressive 85% said they believe GenAI should be integrated into their work, compared to 62% globally. And while 4% of LatAm respondents said they did not think GenAI should be applied in their jobs, this is considerably less than the 13% of global respondents who said the same thing. This positive stance reflects Latin America’s proactive approach to adopting AI technologies in order to improve efficiency and effectiveness in professional work.
According to LatAm respondents, GenAI will shape the future of professional work in the region in various ways. The most popular view, shared by 20% of respondents, was that GenAI will make an impact on their work through transformative changes. Further, 18% said they believed that GenAI will streamline work processes, making tasks more efficient and reducing the time and effort required to complete them. Similarly, another 18% said they regarded GenAI as a valuable tool for enhancing work-life balance, suggesting that its integration could lead to more flexible and manageable work environments.
GenAI challenges and opportunities in Latin America
Despite the region’s overall positive sentiment towards GenAI, survey respondents in Latin America identified certain challenges and opportunities that must be correctly assessed to ensure its successful adoption and maximize its potential in the region.
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- Concerns and barriers to adoption — Despite the overall optimism, LatAm respondents acknowledged significant concerns that could hinder GenAI adoption. Data security (cited by 53% of LatAm respondents), privacy and confidentiality of information entered into GenAI tools (50%), and the cost of these tools (50%) emerged as primary barriers. By contrast, the most popular concern on a global scale was the potential for inaccurate responses (73%).
- Policy and training gaps — Interestingly, only 18% of LatAm respondents said their organizations have established policies guiding GenAI use, compared to 36% globally. Further, 77% of LatAm respondents reported a lack of training on GenAI from their organizations. When compared to the global picture, this figure is higher by 13 percentage points (64% globally).
- Integration and future plans — While LatAm currently lags behind the global average (22%) in the business integration of GenAI, with only 15% of LatAm respondents saying they already use it, there is a strong inclination towards future adoption. More than one-third (38%) of respondents from the region said their organizations are planning to implement GenAI, and 20% said they are still evaluating its usage within their organizations.
- Timeframe for wide-scale adoption — Less than one fifth (18%) of LatAm respondents mentioned that their organizations are already using GenAI on a wide-scale basis, while 26% of global respondents said their organizations were. However, 21% of LatAm respondents said they expect this to happen within their organizations over the next 6 months, 29% said they think it will happen in 6 to 12 months, and 12% said they anticipate this change in 1 to 3 years. Only 20% said they were not sure about their organization’s adoption timeline.
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Making LatAm services more competitive
The survey results reveal Latin American professionals’ strong belief in GenAI’s potential to improve productivity and reshape the landscape of professional work in new ways. While the region may currently lag in the organization-wide integration of GenAI compared to other parts of the world, its proactive position is evident in the significant number of respondents who voiced excitement about it and whose organizations are planning to implement GenAI in their processes sooner rather than later.
With structured strategies, well-studied policies, and an investment plan that involves tech tools and personnel training, organizations in Latin America can embrace GenAI successfully and enhance their competitiveness and innovation in the global market.
You can download a full copy of the Thomson Reuters Institute’s recent 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report here
