In the Census survey collected 5 to 18 October 2026 (published 22 October 2026), 24.6% of US employer businesses said they used AI in a business function in the last two weeks. That is up 0.8 points from 23.8% in the wave before and up from 17.3% in November 2025, the first wave asked with today's wording.
+0.8 points since the previous figure: 23.8% (8 Oct 2026)
Margin of error: SE 0.27 points (about plus or minus 0.5 points at 95% confidence) Said "do not know": 9.6%
| Group | Firms using AI |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 staff | 24.3% |
| 5 to 9 | 22.6% |
| 10 to 19 | 24.6% |
| 20 to 49 | 26% |
| 50 to 99 | 29% |
| 100 to 249 | 35.3% |
| 250 or more | 43.6% |
| All US firms | 24.6% |
| Group | Used AI in last two weeks | Expect to use AI in next six months |
|---|---|---|
| 30 Nov 2025 | 17.3% | 21.1% |
| 14 Dec 2025 | 17.2% | 20.9% |
| 28 Dec 2025 | 17.8% | 21.3% |
| 11 Jan 2026 | 17.7% | 22.4% |
| 25 Jan 2026 | 18.2% | 22.1% |
| 8 Feb 2026 | 18.9% | 22.1% |
| 22 Feb 2026 | 17.5% | 21% |
| 8 Mar 2026 | 18.2% | 21.8% |
| 22 Mar 2026 | 18.9% | 22.3% |
| 5 Apr 2026 | 19.1% | 22.5% |
| 19 Apr 2026 | 19.8% | 23% |
| 3 May 2026 | 19.8% | 22.8% |
| 17 May 2026 | 19.5% | 22.7% |
| 31 May 2026 | 20.6% | 23.7% |
| 14 Jun 2026 | 20.6% | 23.9% |
| 28 Jun 2026 | 20.6% | 23.7% |
| 12 Jul 2026 | 21.7% | 24.5% |
| 26 Jul 2026 | 21.5% | 24.3% |
| 9 Aug 2026 | 21.8% | 25.9% |
| 23 Aug 2026 | 22.4% | 25.9% |
| 6 Sep 2026 | 23.2% | 27.3% |
| 20 Sep 2026 | 23.8% | 27.6% |
| 4 Oct 2026 | 23.8% | 27.7% |
| 18 Oct 2026 | 24.6% | 28.6% |
| Group | Firms using AI |
|---|---|
| Information | 46.4% |
| Professional services | 43.8% |
| Finance and insurance | 40.5% |
| Educational services | 33.4% |
| All US firms | 24.6% |
| Manufacturing | 22.9% |
| Retail trade | 18.5% |
| Accommodation and food | 10.7% |
| Group | Firms using AI |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 34.1% |
| Utah | 32.1% |
| Colorado | 31.9% |
| Arizona | 31.5% |
| All US firms | 24.6% |
| New Mexico | 14.7% |
| Wyoming | 14.4% |
| Idaho | 13.5% |
| West Virginia | 9.8% |
In plain words
About one in four US businesses with employees now uses AI somewhere in the business. Census asks a new group of firms every two weeks, so this number moves.
used AI in the last two weeks (survey of 5-18 Oct 2026)
expect to use AI in the next six months
said they do not know if they use AI
Why you can trust it. Official US government survey, about 1.2 million employer businesses sampled, about 24,000 answers in this wave. Census labels BTOS an experimental data product.
Source: US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey, Oct 2026
Before and now
First wave in the Census file. Old wording: AI "in producing goods or services".
Last wave with the old wording.
Waves collected 6 Oct to 16 Nov 2025 were not run (federal funding lapse).
New wording: AI "in any of its business functions". A new series starts here.
Wave ending 3 May 2026.
Latest wave, collected 5-18 Oct 2026.
First wave asked with the SI wording. Watch for a break.
Compare
USA Oct 2026
LatestPrevious two-week wave
+0.8 ptsWave ending 3 May 2026
+4.8 ptsFirst wave with today's wording
+7.3 ptsCompare yourself with the published data for firms your size.
of US firms with 1 to 4 employees used AI in a business function in the last two weeks, close to the 24.6% national rate (small firms, USA). All firms: 24.6%.
Most firms your size have not started either, so an early start is still an edge.
US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey, Oct 2026
Who it is for
See how many firms like yours already use AI.
Compare your size band in the table: 24.3% for 1 to 4 staff.
Quote an official, dated number with its error margin.
Cite the wave dates and the 0.27-point standard error.
Size the market of firms already using AI by sector.
Information (46.4%) and professional services (43.8%) lead.
Who it affects
The same 24.6% means something different for each group.
Large employers use AI at almost twice the national rate.
Up from 17% in Nov 2025; the smallest firms now sit close to the national rate.
Media, software and telecom firms lead all sectors.
Restaurants and hotels use AI least of the large sectors.
Gains and risks
Numbers from studies and surveys, each with its source.
of AI-using firms said AI did not change their total employment (AI supplement, Nov 2025 to Feb 2026).US Census Bureau, BTOS AI supplement
of AI-using firms used AI to supplement or enhance a task an employee does.US Census Bureau, BTOS AI supplement
of AI-using firms used AI to perform a task an employee used to do.US Census Bureau, BTOS AI supplement
of firms do not know whether they use AI, so the true rate is uncertain.US Census Bureau, BTOS, Oct 2026
Where it shows
Firms with 1 to 4 staff went from 17% in Nov 2025 to 24.3% in Oct 2026.
Firms with 250 or more staff: 43.6%, up from 30.5% in Nov 2025.
Utah 32.1% against West Virginia 9.8%, but state numbers have standard errors of 2 to 7 points. See the Census state map.
The future
Forecasts below are made by others and linked to where they were published. Our own reading of the data is marked as ours.
US employer firms that expect to use AI in the next six months (5-18 Oct 2026 survey)
By US Census Bureau (BTOS), 22 Oct 2026
Worldwide AI spending forecast for 2026, up 49.5% on 2025
By Gartner, 16 Sep 2026
Expected boost to annual labor productivity growth from AI over the next three years
By NBER w34836 (survey of nearly 9,000 executives), 1 Oct 2026
Next data
Census publishes the next wave on 5 November 2026. It is the first asked with the "Super Intelligence or SI" wording, so we will mark it as a new method before we join it to this line.
US Census Bureau, every two weeks
The data
As published by US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey, Oct 2026. Standard errors are shown where the source gives them.
| Group (5-18 Oct 2026 wave) | Share using AI | Standard error (points) |
|---|---|---|
| All US employer firms | 24.6% | 0.27 |
| All firms: said "do not know" | 9.6% | 0.22 |
| All firms: expect to use AI in next six months | 28.6% | 0.21 |
| 1 to 4 employees | 24.3% | 0.32 |
| 5 to 9 | 22.6% | 0.50 |
| 10 to 19 | 24.6% | 0.94 |
| 20 to 49 | 26.0% | 0.74 |
| 50 to 99 | 29.0% | 1.09 |
| 100 to 249 | 35.3% | 1.97 |
| 250 or more | 43.6% | 1.51 |
| Information | 46.4% | 2.02 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 43.8% | 0.93 |
| Finance and insurance | 40.5% | 1.53 |
| Educational services | 33.4% | 1.96 |
| Health care and social assistance | 27.6% | 0.88 |
| Manufacturing | 22.9% | 1.35 |
| Retail trade | 18.5% | 0.73 |
| Construction | 16.1% | 0.79 |
| Accommodation and food services | 10.7% | 1.08 |
| District of Columbia | 34.1% | 6.66 |
| Utah | 32.1% | 3.54 |
| Colorado | 31.9% | 1.57 |
| Arizona | 31.5% | 2.47 |
| California | 24.6% | 0.70 |
| Texas | 28.0% | 1.16 |
| New York | 19.4% | 0.65 |
| Florida | 26.8% | 1.05 |
| New Mexico | 14.7% | 3.78 |
| Wyoming | 14.4% | 4.18 |
| Idaho | 13.5% | 2.16 |
| West Virginia | 9.8% | 3.19 |
| Alaska | Suppressed (S) | - |
Census counts every employer firm once. Most US firms are small, so the share is lower than in surveys of big companies.
The Fed Small Business Credit Survey (46%) counts use by a firm or its employees in a convenience sample of small firms. NBER (78%) asks senior executives in seven countries. McKinsey (88%) counts survey respondents worldwide, many at large firms.
Weighted by jobs instead of firms, the same Census survey gives 32%: AI-using firms hold about a third of US employment.
Method and use
National.xlsx, Response Estimates: "In the last two weeks, did this business use Super Intelligence or SI (formerly referred to as Artificial Intelligence or AI) in any of its business functions?" Yes, wave 202621 (collected 5-18 Oct 2026): 24.6%
APA
MLA
HTML link
Keep the source link under the chart. The chart updates when the number does.
FAQ
24.6% of US employer businesses used AI in a business function in the last two weeks, in the Census survey collected 5-18 October 2026.
Yes. It rose from 17.3% in November 2025 to 24.6% in October 2026 on the same question. Older numbers (about 10% in 2025) used a narrower question and are not comparable.
Yes. 43.6% of firms with 250 or more employees used AI, against 24.3% of firms with 1 to 4 employees (Oct 2026).
Information: 46.4% of firms, then professional, scientific and technical services (43.8%) and finance and insurance (40.5%). Accommodation and food services is among the lowest at 10.7%.
Executive Order 14434 (29 Sep 2026) tells agencies to use "Super Intelligence" and "SI". Census changed the question from the 19 Oct 2026 collection; the meaning of AI in law stays the same.
Every two weeks. The next release is 5 November 2026.
We help small and mid-size firms turn data like this into useful content, answers for customers and visibility in AI search.
Every number on this page was checked at its original source. Free to cite with a link to this page.
Free alerts from DigitalTreed, straight to your browser.
