Who's actually using it
Census Bureau's Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS) tracks AI usage every two weeks. Latest reading: 24.7% of US small businesses report using AI tools in the past two weeks — triple the 8% reading from early 2024.
Adoption skews larger: 46% of firms with 250+ employees use AI, vs 17% of firms with under 10. The gap is closing as consumer tools (ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot) become accessible to single-employee firms.
What they're using AI for
Most common use cases by share of AI-using small businesses:
- Marketing copy + ad creative — 38%
- Customer support chatbots — 26%
- Data analysis + reporting — 22%
- Code generation + automation — 19%
- Document drafting — 18%
- Image / video generation — 15%
The productivity dividend
Owners report saving 12 hours per week on average across AI-augmented tasks. The headline ROI in customer support: AI-assisted reps resolve tickets 14% faster with no measurable drop in CSAT (research from Brynjolfsson, Raymond, Li at Stanford / MIT).
Skeptics note these are self-reported numbers from early adopters. Independent productivity audits show smaller gains (3–7%) but with significant variance — AI helps below-median workers most.