--- title: "AI Adoption Rate Among US Businesses" date: 2026-10-08 url: https://modevc.com/charts/ai-adoption-rate-us-businesses/ keywords: ["ai adoption by industry", "ai adoption rate", "ai adoption statistics 2026"] publisher: Mode VC --- # AI Adoption Rate Among US Businesses 23.8% of US businesses now use AI to make what they sell. The other 76.2% will not shop for a model; they will buy through a channel. ## Chart: 23.8% of US firms used AI in the latest two-week survey, up from 17.3% 10 months earlier. 76.2% still did not. Share of US businesses using AI to produce goods or services in the last two weeks, and share expecting to in six months. Census BTOS, biweekly, weighted, 16 Nov 2025 – 6 Sept 2026. | Series | Date | Value | Note | |---|---|---|---| | Using AI now | 2025-11-16 | 17.3% | | | Using AI now | 2025-11-30 | 17.2% | | | Using AI now | 2025-12-14 | 17.8% | | | Using AI now | 2025-12-28 | 17.7% | | | Using AI now | 2026-01-11 | 18.2% | | | Using AI now | 2026-01-25 | 18.9% | | | Using AI now | 2026-02-08 | 17.5% | | | Using AI now | 2026-02-22 | 18.2% | | | Using AI now | 2026-03-08 | 18.9% | | | Using AI now | 2026-03-22 | 19.1% | | | Using AI now | 2026-04-05 | 19.8% | | | Using AI now | 2026-04-19 | 19.8% | | | Using AI now | 2026-05-03 | 19.5% | | | Using AI now | 2026-05-17 | 20.6% | | | Using AI now | 2026-05-31 | 20.6% | | | Using AI now | 2026-06-14 | 20.6% | | | Using AI now | 2026-06-28 | 21.7% | | | Using AI now | 2026-07-12 | 21.5% | | | Using AI now | 2026-07-26 | 21.8% | | | Using AI now | 2026-08-09 | 22.4% | | | Using AI now | 2026-08-23 | 23.2% | | | Using AI now | 2026-09-06 | 23.8% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2025-11-16 | 21.1% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2025-11-30 | 20.9% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2025-12-14 | 21.3% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2025-12-28 | 22.4% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-01-11 | 22.1% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-01-25 | 22.1% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-02-08 | 21% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-02-22 | 21.8% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-03-08 | 22.3% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-03-22 | 22.5% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-04-05 | 23% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-04-19 | 22.8% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-05-03 | 22.7% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-05-17 | 23.7% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-05-31 | 23.9% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-06-14 | 23.7% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-06-28 | 24.5% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-07-12 | 24.3% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-07-26 | 25.9% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-08-09 | 25.9% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-08-23 | 27.3% | | | Expect to in 6 months | 2026-09-06 | 27.6% | | Note: Dates are the end of each two-week reference period. Cycles before mid-Nov 2025 were not collected here. The 50% year is a straight line from the last 10 months, not a forecast. ## The signal - **Census:** The latest [Business Trends and Outlook Survey](https://www.census.gov/hfp/btos/downloads/National.xlsx) cycle (to 6 Sept 2026) puts firm AI use at a record 23.8%. - **St. Louis Fed:** More than half of working-age Americans now use generative AI outside work: 55%, up from 36% in mid-2024. [Real-Time Population Survey](https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/RPSGENAIUSAGESHARENONWORK) - **Gallup:** Among US employees who use AI, 63% say it speeds them up, yet only 28% of all employees use it weekly. ## The Mode read AI adoption has two sides: people and companies. The St. Louis Fed tracks people, and most working-age Americans now use generative AI outside work. The Census Bureau tracks companies every two weeks, and its newest cycle is a record. Firm use rose 6.5 points in 10 months, to **23.8%**. Firms expect 27.6% within six months. A straight line from the last 10 months reaches half of all firms only in **2030**. That is the open field. Most of the remaining 76.2% are small and mid-sized businesses. They will not compare models. They will adopt AI the way they adopted payroll and payments: through a channel they already trust, such as an accountant, a vertical software tool, a distributor or a point-of-sale system. The companies that own those channels will capture the adoption. > The model race is crowded. The race for the channel has barely started. **What we would back:** Companies that own a channel into small and mid-sized businesses and use AI to sell more through it. ## Sources - [US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey](https://www.census.gov/hfp/btos/downloads/National.xlsx) - [Gallup, AI at work survey, 26 Jan – 24 Mar 2026](https://news.gallup.com/poll/714602/benefits-work-unevenly-distributed.aspx)