As of 2024, around 40% of companies worldwide are actively utilizing AI in their operations, with another 42% exploring its adoption. This means over 82% of businesses are engaging with AI in some form, highlighting its growing importance across industries.
The rapid adoption of AI is fueled by its ability to enhance efficiency, streamline processes, and provide actionable, data-driven insights. Leading the charge is India, where 59% of companies have embraced AI, while the United States lags behind with a comparatively low adoption rate of 33%.
This article covers the latest trends, statistics, and insights about AI adoption in businesses globally, highlighting how companies leverage this transformative technology.
Number Of Companies Using AI In 2024 (Top Picks)
- 40% of companies worldwide use AI in their operations.
- 82% of businesses are either using or exploring AI.
- 99% of Fortune 500 companies use AI.
- India has the highest AI adoption rate, with 59% of companies using AI.
- AI could replace 300 million jobs by 2030.
- 56% of companies use AI for customer service.
- The AI market is expected to reach $184.04 billion by 2024.
- 77% of companies worry that AI could replace human jobs.
How Many Companies Use AI?
- 40% of companies worldwide use AI in their businesses.
Additionally, 42% of businesses are actively exploring the potential of AI, with another 40% considering its future applications. This indicates that over 82% of companies worldwide are either already utilizing AI or are in the process of exploring its implementation.
With approximately 333.34 million companies operating globally, this means more than 266 million businesses are leveraging or investigating AI technologies to enhance their operations.
Looking back, in 2017, only 20% of companies had adopted AI in their products and services. However, 72% of those businesses foresaw AI playing a significant role in shaping their business landscape within the next five years.
- As of 2024, 72% of companies are incorporating AI into at least one aspect of their business operations.
This marks a 17-percentage-point increase from 55% in previous years. The adoption of AI saw a sharp rise between 2017 and 2019, with usage growing by 38% during that period.
The following table displays the percentage of companies that have adopted at least one business function:
| Year | Percentage Of Companies That Use AI In At Least One Business Function |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 72% |
| 2023 | 55% |
| 2022 | 50% |
| 2021 | 56% |
| 2020 | 50% |
| 2019 | 58% |
| 2018 | 47% |
| 2017 | 20% |
Source: Exploding topics.
- In 2023, 20 new AI companies achieved unicorn status, with three more joining the ranks in the first quarter of 2024.
This brings the total number of AI startups valued at $1 billion or more to an impressive 214.
At the top of the list is OpenAI, valued at an impressive $80 billion as of March 2024. This makes it $15 billion more valuable than prominent companies like China’s e-commerce leader, Stripe.
Source: EdgeDelta
- 66% of companies plan to use AI to address their sustainability goals.
One of the main goals that companies want to address with the help of AI is sustainability goals.
Other goals that companies wish to achieve with the implementation of AI are:
- Cost savings and efficiencies (54%)
- Improvements in IT or network performance (53%)
- Better experiences for customers (48%)
Source: IBM global AI adoption report.
AI Adoption And Growth In Business
- Over half of companies use AI to improve production processes, SEO optimization, and improving process automation.
AI is helping companies to become more productive, save time, and generate creative outputs.
According to Forbes surveys, most businesses and companies already use or plan to use AI in various business management processes and tasks.
The following table displays the percentage of businesses and companies that use AI in different Internal processes to improve the workflow.
| Internal Process of Businesses and Companies | Percentage of Businesses And Companies That Have Implemented AI In These Internal Processes |
|---|---|
| Improve production processes | 53% |
| Search Engine Optimization tasks | 52% |
| Process automation | 51% |
| Internal communications, plans, presentations, and reports | 46% |
| Aggregate business data | 40% |
| Idea generation | 38% |
| Minimize safety risks | 38% |
| Write code | 31% |
| Write website copy | 29% |
Source: Forbes.
- 30% of the global IT professionals said that AI had helped them save time.
AI is helping companies address the skill shortage by automating repetitive tasks.
Implementing AI-automated software and tools has helped increase employee engagement, eventually saving time.
Source: IMB global AI adoption report
- 56% of businesses use AI for customer services.
While 56% of business owners use AI for cybersecurity and fraud management.
Similarly, businesses are turning towards increased usage of AI in all fields to improve the quality of work.
Here are further details about the fields where businesses use AI.
- Customer Service (56%)
- Cybersecurity(51%)
- Digital personal assistants(47%)
- Customer relationship management(46%)
- Inventory management(40%)
- Content production(35%)
- Product recommendation(33%)
- Accounting(30%)
- Supply chain operations(30%)
- Recruiting and talent sourcing(26%)
- Audience segmentation(24%)
Source: Forbes.
- 61% of the employees currently use or plan to use generative AI.
The most common usage of generative AI is recorded in marketing and sales, products, services operations, and service development.
This is due to the huge availability of AI sales tools and software and AI marketing tools that automate repetitive tasks.
14% of companies use generative AI for marketing and sales, and 13% for product and service development.
Other commonly reported usages of generative AI are:
- Service operations (10%)
- Risk management(4%)
- Strategy and corporate finance (4%)
- HR(3%)
- Supply chain management(3%)
- Manufacturing(2%)
Source: McKinsey, Salesforce.
- Over half of businesses and companies use AI and machine learning to enhance customer experience.
57% of the companies use machine learning to improve consumer experience.
AI plays a huge role in enhancing customer experience and eventually helping businesses retain their consumers and build a loyal customer base.
73% of businesses use AI-powered chatbots to address user queries instantly. At the same time, 61% of these companies and businesses use emails to communicate about their discounts, sales, new releases, etc.
Apart from that, the usage of AI in personalization has become a new trend. Hence, over 55% and 46% of businesses have deployed AI-powered personalization to provide personalized services and advertising.
The following table displays the percentage of businesses and companies that use AI in different fields to improve the consumer experience.
| Usage of AI in Different Fields | Percentage of Businesses And Companies That Use AI In The Given Fields |
|---|---|
| Chatbots | 73% |
| Emails | 61% |
| Personalized services | 55% |
| Text messages | 49% |
| Personalized advertising | 46% |
| Long-form written content | 42% |
| Phone calls | 36% |
Source: Forbes.
Fortune 500 Companies Using AI
- 99% of the Fortune 500 companies use AI.
Most Fortune 500 companies use AI in their recruitment processes and management processes.
This is because using AI in the recruitment process can reduce hiring costs by 30%.
Global Adoption Of AI By Companies By Region
- As of 2024, India leads the global stage in AI adoption for business, with 59% of companies integrating AI into their operations.
Close behind is the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where 58% of businesses have implemented AI solutions.
Surprisingly, the United States lags significantly, with only 33% of companies adopting AI—one of the lowest rates among major economies. This highlights a potential gap in AI implementation despite the U.S. being a hub for AI innovation.
The following infographic displays the percentage of AI adoption rates recorded in different countries worldwide.
| Country | Percentage of Companies that Deployed AI | Percentage of Companies Exploring AI |
|---|---|---|
| China | 50% | 36% |
| India | 59% | 27% |
| Canada | 37% | 48% |
| Italy | 36% | 38% |
| Singapore | 53% | 41% |
| UAE | 58% | 32% |
| Germany | 32% | 44% |
| France | 26% | 45% |
| Spain | 28% | 51% |
| Latin America | 47% | 34% |
| United Kingdom | 37% | 41% |
| United States | 33% | 38% |
| Australia | 29% | 50% |
| South Korea | 40% | 48% |
| Japan | 34% | 46% |
Source: Statista
AI Market Growth Forecast
- The AI market is expected to grow significantly to $184.04 billion in 2024, representing a projected increase of 35.4% from 2023.
Comparatively, the market size in 2023 stood at $135.93 billion, reflecting a year-over-year (YoY) growth of 8.9%. Looking ahead further, the market is projected to skyrocket to $826.73 billion by 2030, a growth from its 2023 value.
Interestingly, the AI market first crossed the $200 billion threshold in 2021 with a value of $202.59 billion, experienced a slight dip in 2022, and is now estimated to cross the $200 billion mark in 2025.
The following table displays the market value of AI recorded over the years.
| Years | AI Market Size ($) |
|---|---|
| 2030* | 826.73 billion |
| 2029* | 667.74 billion |
| 2028* | 529.23 billion |
| 2027* | 415.61 billion |
| 2026* | 320.14 billion |
| 2025* | 243.72 billion |
| 2024* | 184.04 billion |
| 2023 | 135.93 billion |
| 2022 | 124.79 billion |
| 2021 | 202.59 billion |
| 2020 | 93.27 billion |
Source: Statista.
- The generative AI market is estimated to be valued at $66.62 billion as of 2024.
The market is expected to reach $207 billion by the end of 2030.
The Generative AI market was worth just $5.67 billion at the beginning of 2020. The market witnessed drastic growth over the last three years and is anticipated to grow at the same speed in the upcoming years.
The following table displays the market size of the Generative AI market recorded over the years.
| Years | Market Size Of The Generative AI Market Recorded Over The Years |
|---|---|
| 2030 | $207 billion |
| 2029 | $181.90 billion |
| 2024 | $66.62 billion |
| 2023 | $44.89 billion |
| 2022 | $23.17 billion |
| 2021 | $11.25 billion |
| 2020 | $5.67 billion |
Source: Statista.
State Of AI In Companies And Businesses
- AI adoption today has increased by 2.5 times compared to 2017.
In the 2017 McKinsey survey, only 20% of the respondents said that their company has adopted AI.
In 2022, 50% of the respondents cited that their companies have adopted the usage of AI in at least one field.
However, the adoption rate peaked in 2019, where 58% of the respondents said that their company had deployed the usage of AI.
The following table displays the rate of adoption of AI recorded over the past years.
| Year | Percentage Of Respondents Whose Companies Have Adopted the Usage of AI |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 56% |
| 2023 | 55% |
| 2022 | 50% |
| 2021 | 56% |
| 2020 | 50% |
| 2019 | 58% |
| 2018 | 47% |
| 2017 | 20% |
Source: McKinsey.
- 94% of business leaders believe that AI is critical to success.
Business leaders believe AI will boost their company and business over the next five years.
Most businesses worldwide look forward to deploying AI in all fields to minimize efforts and gain high outcomes.
Source: Delloite.
- 52% of the companies have more than 5% of their digital budgets for AI.
The level of investment in AI has increased along with the increase in the rates of AI adoption.
Five years ago, in 2018, only 40% of the companies invested over 5% of their digital budgets in AI.
Whereas, in 2022, over half of the companies have allotted more than 5% of their digital budgets for AI adoption.
Further, 63% of the respondents say they expect their organization’s investments in AI to increase over the next three years.
Source: McKinsey.
Concerns Of Business Owners About Implementing AI
- 1 in 4 business owners fear that artificial intelligence will affect their website’s traffic.
24% of businesses and companies worldwide are concerned that AI may affect the visibility of their business on search engines.
However, 64% of businesses and companies are not concerned about using artificial intelligence, while 12% are unsure.
According to the Forbes survey, these concerns are reasonable, as 65% of the consumers are looking forward to using ChatGPT for searches instead of search engines.
Source: Forbes.
- Over 43% of businesses are concerned that using AI will make them technology-dependent.
Additionally, 35% of the entrepreneurs are unsure if their technical skills are sufficient to use AI efficiently.
Further, one in three businesses are concerned about the spread of misinformation due to the usage of AI.
Adoption of AI indeed comes with some risks and disadvantages. Companies also need well-trained employees to adopt AI in their work systems.
Here are further concerns that company owners have regarding AI adoptions.
| Concerns Of The Company Owners | Percentage of Business Owners and Company Owners |
|---|---|
| Technology dependence | 43% |
| Technical skills to use AI | 35% |
| Human workforce reduction | 33% |
| Privacy concerns | 31% |
| Provide my business or customers with misinformation | 30% |
| Bias errors | 28% |
| Negatively impact customer relationships | 24% |
Source: Forbes.
Impact Of AI On Job And Employment
- 77% of employees fear humans may lose their jobs due to AI advancements.
33% of the survey participants in a Forbes survey anticipated that adopting AI companies may reduce the human workforce.
- 82% of the employees believe AI increases job satisfaction and enhances performance.
The majority of the workforce is optimistic about AI adoption. They expect that AI will enhance their performance and promote cross-organizational collaboration.
However, 47% of the people say that AI creates fear or concern among employees and companies.
Source: Deloitte.
- AI could replace 300 million full-time jobs by 2030.
AI could replace a quarter of work tasks, especially in the United States and Europe. However, it may also create new job opportunities and increase productivity.
Implementing AI will eventually increase the total annual value of goods and services by 7%.
Further researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and OpenAI found that some white-collar workers are most likely affected by workforce automation.
Another report from Forbes stated that AI will replace approximately two million manufacturing workers by 2025.
A study by the McKinsey Global Institute says at least 14% of employees globally will need to change their careers due to AI advancements by 2030.
Source: Nexford University.
- AI will not only take jobs but also create new ones
The World Economic Forum (WEF) anticipates a global disruption of 85 million jobs and the emergence of 97 million new job roles from 2020 to 2025. Additionally, it foresees a 44% disruption in workers’ skills between 2023 and 2028, reflecting a nine-percentage-point increase compared to its previous five-year projection.
Source: World Economic Forum
Challenges In AI Adoption By Companies
- The major challenge hindering AI adoption and deployment is limited AI skills, expertise, and knowledge.
34% of the companies cited it as a major challenge in AI adoption.
Some companies cite that AI is very expensive(29%), while 25% said they lack the proper tools and platforms to develop models.
AI is complex to operate and deploy if the employees do not have the required knowledge. Similarly, it becomes difficult for companies to integrate and scale their projects with AI (24%), and the data complexity increases (24%).
Source: IBM, Statista.
- AI is not trustworthy and responsible and sometimes provides biased responses.
The majority of companies cannot address these issues, and hence, they end up generating losses or unexpected outputs with the use of AI.
Other issues that the companies must address are:
- Steps to reducing bias (74%)
- Tracking performance variations and model drift (68%)
- Making sure they can explain AI-powered decisions (61%)
Source: IBM.
Future Of AI In The Business
- AI could automate up to 70 percent of business activities across most occupations.
According to McKinsey’s report, implementing automation will add $13 trillion to the global economy.
This will increase the global GDP by 1.2% annually. The major factors responsible for this increase would be automation and increased innovation in products and services.
Source: Mc Kinsey.
Conclusion: How Many Companies Use AI?
As of 2024, 40% of companies worldwide have already integrated AI into their operations, with another 42% exploring its potential. This widespread adoption is especially prominent among leading businesses, with 99% of Fortune 500 companies utilizing AI technologies.
One of the most common uses of AI is in customer service, where 56% of companies are implementing AI tools to enhance the customer experience. The growth of AI shows no signs of slowing down, with the market projected to reach $184.04 billion by the end of 2024, and potentially soaring to $826.73 billion by 2030, indicating the continuing transformation of industries through AI.
