SMB Use of and Satisfaction with AI

How many SMBs are using AI? How are they using it? And what contribution is it making to their businesses? To find out, we recently surveyed 500 U.S. SMB principals.

SMB adoption of AI is growing fast. In our September survey, 21% of very small businesses (VSBs, or those with fewer than 20 employees), 36% of small businesses (SBs, with 20 to 99 employees), and 43% of midsize businesses (MBs, with 100-500 employees) are actively using AI. This is a sharp increase from last November, when active use was 8%, 27% and 38%, respectively. Adoption has increased dramatically among VSBs in particular.

SMB AI Usage Status

Of those that are using AI, VSBs are most likely to use it for marketing, followed by using it as a virtual assistant. SBs use AI most for sales support, followed by business intelligence. MBs use AI for IT and data security, followed by business intelligence and workflow automation.

How SMBs are Using AI

AI is making a significant contribution. 62% of VSBs say AI is making an extremely or very significant contribution to their business, as do 76% of SBs and 74% of MBs. As SMBs talk to their peers about their experience with AI, look for its adoption to continue to grow.

AI Contribution

Looking for actionable SMB insight? Bredin’s global research gives you high-value insights to improve your go-to-market, product, pricing, UX, and other strategies. We also generate uniquely valuable data for high-impact content, PR, social, and sales support programs.