{
 "name": "Small business AI and automation statistics (2026)",
 "url": "https://infinioffice.com/automation-statistics/",
 "updated": "2026-11-10",
 "cite": "InfiniOffice. (2026). Small business AI and automation statistics (2026). https://infinioffice.com/automation-statistics/",
 "index": {
  "name": "2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index",
  "listings": 112,
  "verified": "2026-10-25",
  "github_snapshot": "2026-10-26",
  "by_type": {
   "company": 46,
   "open-source": 38,
   "skill": 16,
   "workflow": 12
  },
  "price_tier": {
   "company": {
    "free": 1,
    "freemium": 18,
    "paid": 23,
    "open-source": 4
   },
   "open-source": {
    "free": 0,
    "freemium": 0,
    "paid": 0,
    "open-source": 38
   },
   "skill": {
    "free": 0,
    "freemium": 0,
    "paid": 0,
    "open-source": 16
   },
   "workflow": {
    "free": 12,
    "freemium": 0,
    "paid": 0,
    "open-source": 0
   }
  },
  "effort": {
   "company": {
    "no-code": 33,
    "low-code": 6,
    "developer": 7
   },
   "open-source": {
    "no-code": 0,
    "low-code": 21,
    "developer": 17
   },
   "skill": {
    "no-code": 0,
    "low-code": 4,
    "developer": 12
   },
   "workflow": {
    "no-code": 0,
    "low-code": 2,
    "developer": 10
   }
  },
  "by_problem": [
   {
    "problem": "Get more customers",
    "listings": 18,
    "hosted_products": 5,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 3,
    "open_source": 10,
    "skills_mcp": 1,
    "recipes": 2
   },
   {
    "problem": "Convert with video",
    "listings": 13,
    "hosted_products": 2,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 0,
    "open_source": 8,
    "skills_mcp": 1,
    "recipes": 2
   },
   {
    "problem": "Answer customers 24/7",
    "listings": 15,
    "hosted_products": 8,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 5,
    "open_source": 6,
    "skills_mcp": 0,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Automate busywork",
    "listings": 20,
    "hosted_products": 7,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 4,
    "open_source": 8,
    "skills_mcp": 4,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Close more sales",
    "listings": 13,
    "hosted_products": 6,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 4,
    "open_source": 5,
    "skills_mcp": 1,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Run your books",
    "listings": 15,
    "hosted_products": 6,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 5,
    "open_source": 5,
    "skills_mcp": 3,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Ship a website fast",
    "listings": 17,
    "hosted_products": 6,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 2,
    "open_source": 4,
    "skills_mcp": 6,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Connect tools to AI",
    "listings": 24,
    "hosted_products": 8,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 3,
    "open_source": 2,
    "skills_mcp": 13,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Run better meetings",
    "listings": 14,
    "hosted_products": 6,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 1,
    "open_source": 6,
    "skills_mcp": 1,
    "recipes": 1
   },
   {
    "problem": "Create content at scale",
    "listings": 13,
    "hosted_products": 5,
    "hosted_no_free_plan": 2,
    "open_source": 6,
    "skills_mcp": 1,
    "recipes": 1
   }
  ],
  "github": {
   "repos": 0,
   "pushed_within_30_days": 0,
   "archived": 0,
   "median_stars": 0,
   "over_10k_stars": 0
  },
  "recipes": {
   "count": 12,
   "buildable_without_paid_tools": 9
  },
  "statements": [
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index found that 79% of 112 hand-checked automation tools and recipes for small businesses can be started without paying: they are open source, free, or have a free plan.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index found that 50% of 46 hosted automation products have no free plan, and 39% offer one.",
   "According to the 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index, 72% of hosted automation products can be set up without technical skills, against none of the 38 open-source tools.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index rated 45% of open-source automation tools as needing a developer to set up; across all 112 listings the figure is 41%.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index found at least three open-source alternatives for 41 of 46 hosted products (89%) in the same problem area.",
   "In the 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index, open-source tools outnumber hosted products in 4 of 10 small business problem areas, and every problem area has at least 2 open-source options.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index found that 9 of 12 step-by-step automation recipes can be built entirely from tools that are open source, free or have a free plan.",
   "A typical automation recipe in the 2026 InfiniOffice Automation Index chains 3 tools in 3.5 steps."
  ]
 },
 "ai_gap": {
  "source": "U.S. Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), Employment Size Class data file",
  "source_url": "https://www.census.gov/hfp/btos/data_downloads",
  "file_url": "https://www.census.gov/hfp/btos/downloads/Employment%20Size%20Class.xlsx",
  "retrieved": "2026-11-10",
  "published": "2026-11-05",
  "window": 6,
  "classes": [
   {
    "key": "A",
    "label": "1 to 4 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "B",
    "label": "Between 5 and 9 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "C",
    "label": "Between 10 and 19 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "D",
    "label": "Between 20 and 49 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "E",
    "label": "Between 50 and 99 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "F",
    "label": "Between 100 and 249 employees"
   },
   {
    "key": "G",
    "label": "250 or more employees"
   }
  ],
  "questions": {
   "use": "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? (Examples of SI use include: SI-powered data analysis; generative SI for marketing, product design, or coding; virtual SI agents for customer service; SI-powered forecasting or pricing; SI-driven computer vision for quality control, etc.)",
   "expect": "During the next six months, do you think this business will be using Super Intelligence or SI (formerly referred to as Artificial Intelligence or AI) in any of its business functions? (Examples of SI use include: SI-powered data analysis; generative SI for marketing, product design, or coding; virtual SI agents for customer service; SI-powered forecasting or pricing; SI-driven computer vision for quality control, etc.)",
   "genai": "In the last two weeks, did this business\u2019s employees use Generative Super Intelligence or SI (formerly referred to as Artificial Intelligence or AI) to assist in any work-related tasks? (Generative SI is a type of Super Intelligence that uses prompts or other inputs to create text, images, music, videos, or code. Some examples of Generative SI include ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude, Grok, Dall E, MidJourney, and GitHub Copilot.)",
   "headcount": "In the last six months, how did this business\u2019s use of Super Intelligence (formerly referred to as Artificial Intelligence or AI) affect the number of employees (total headcount) at this business?"
  },
  "periods": [
   {
    "id": "202524",
    "ref_start": "2025-11-03",
    "ref_end": "2025-11-16",
    "published": "2025-12-04"
   },
   {
    "id": "202525",
    "ref_start": "2025-11-17",
    "ref_end": "2025-11-30",
    "published": "2025-12-18"
   },
   {
    "id": "202526",
    "ref_start": "2025-12-01",
    "ref_end": "2025-12-14",
    "published": "2025-12-31"
   },
   {
    "id": "202601",
    "ref_start": "2025-12-15",
    "ref_end": "2025-12-28",
    "published": "2026-01-15"
   },
   {
    "id": "202602",
    "ref_start": "2025-12-29",
    "ref_end": "2026-01-11",
    "published": "2026-01-29"
   },
   {
    "id": "202603",
    "ref_start": "2026-01-12",
    "ref_end": "2026-01-25",
    "published": "2026-02-12"
   },
   {
    "id": "202604",
    "ref_start": "2026-01-26",
    "ref_end": "2026-02-08",
    "published": "2026-02-26"
   },
   {
    "id": "202605",
    "ref_start": "2026-02-09",
    "ref_end": "2026-02-22",
    "published": "2026-03-12"
   },
   {
    "id": "202606",
    "ref_start": "2026-02-23",
    "ref_end": "2026-03-08",
    "published": "2026-03-26"
   },
   {
    "id": "202607",
    "ref_start": "2026-03-09",
    "ref_end": "2026-03-22",
    "published": "2026-04-09"
   },
   {
    "id": "202608",
    "ref_start": "2026-03-23",
    "ref_end": "2026-04-05",
    "published": "2026-04-23"
   },
   {
    "id": "202609",
    "ref_start": "2026-04-06",
    "ref_end": "2026-04-19",
    "published": "2026-05-07"
   },
   {
    "id": "202610",
    "ref_start": "2026-04-20",
    "ref_end": "2026-05-03",
    "published": "2026-05-21"
   },
   {
    "id": "202611",
    "ref_start": "2026-05-04",
    "ref_end": "2026-05-17",
    "published": "2026-06-04"
   },
   {
    "id": "202612",
    "ref_start": "2026-05-18",
    "ref_end": "2026-05-31",
    "published": "2026-06-18"
   },
   {
    "id": "202613",
    "ref_start": "2026-06-01",
    "ref_end": "2026-06-14",
    "published": "2026-07-02"
   },
   {
    "id": "202614",
    "ref_start": "2026-06-15",
    "ref_end": "2026-06-28",
    "published": "2026-07-16"
   },
   {
    "id": "202615",
    "ref_start": "2026-06-29",
    "ref_end": "2026-07-12",
    "published": "2026-07-30"
   },
   {
    "id": "202616",
    "ref_start": "2026-07-13",
    "ref_end": "2026-07-26",
    "published": "2026-08-13"
   },
   {
    "id": "202617",
    "ref_start": "2026-07-27",
    "ref_end": "2026-08-09",
    "published": "2026-08-27"
   },
   {
    "id": "202618",
    "ref_start": "2026-08-10",
    "ref_end": "2026-08-23",
    "published": "2026-09-10"
   },
   {
    "id": "202619",
    "ref_start": "2026-08-24",
    "ref_end": "2026-09-06",
    "published": "2026-09-24"
   },
   {
    "id": "202620",
    "ref_start": "2026-09-07",
    "ref_end": "2026-09-20",
    "published": "2026-10-08"
   },
   {
    "id": "202621",
    "ref_start": "2026-09-21",
    "ref_end": "2026-10-04",
    "published": "2026-10-22"
   }
  ],
  "use": {
   "A": [
    17.0,
    16.9,
    17.7,
    17.6,
    18.2,
    18.5,
    17.5,
    18.2,
    18.5,
    19.0,
    19.2,
    19.0,
    19.1,
    20.0,
    20.1,
    20.0,
    20.8,
    20.8,
    21.9,
    22.5,
    23.6,
    23.8,
    23.9,
    24.3
   ],
   "B": [
    15.5,
    16.3,
    18.3,
    16.8,
    17.5,
    17.9,
    15.7,
    17.1,
    18.6,
    17.5,
    18.5,
    19.5,
    18.5,
    19.0,
    20.7,
    19.7,
    20.5,
    21.3,
    20.0,
    20.4,
    21.0,
    21.1,
    21.5,
    22.6
   ],
   "C": [
    17.8,
    17.9,
    16.0,
    16.2,
    16.6,
    18.9,
    17.2,
    17.4,
    17.4,
    18.2,
    19.9,
    19.4,
    19.1,
    21.6,
    19.2,
    20.0,
    22.5,
    21.3,
    20.2,
    21.8,
    20.8,
    23.0,
    22.4,
    24.6
   ],
   "D": [
    18.7,
    18.1,
    18.5,
    18.1,
    18.3,
    19.4,
    17.4,
    18.6,
    21.5,
    19.4,
    22.4,
    21.3,
    19.5,
    21.5,
    22.7,
    22.6,
    25.1,
    22.7,
    22.4,
    21.8,
    23.3,
    24.5,
    24.8,
    26.0
   ],
   "E": [
    20.7,
    20.1,
    17.5,
    20.9,
    23.8,
    25.1,
    20.6,
    20.3,
    22.3,
    21.8,
    25.6,
    25.8,
    25.5,
    24.4,
    24.7,
    25.5,
    27.6,
    28.4,
    27.8,
    26.2,
    25.8,
    29.4,
    29.2,
    29.0
   ],
   "F": [
    23.7,
    24.7,
    25.4,
    28.2,
    25.6,
    24.6,
    24.3,
    25.0,
    26.0,
    28.8,
    30.6,
    32.0,
    30.6,
    31.1,
    29.7,
    34.2,
    30.5,
    33.6,
    30.3,
    30.3,
    34.5,
    34.1,
    36.4,
    35.3
   ],
   "G": [
    30.5,
    25.6,
    32.7,
    32.5,
    27.1,
    34.8,
    31.9,
    33.5,
    35.3,
    37.0,
    31.2,
    37.3,
    36.1,
    36.8,
    40.7,
    40.3,
    38.8,
    36.8,
    41.5,
    39.9,
    38.4,
    44.0,
    36.5,
    43.6
   ]
  },
  "expect": {
   "A": [
    20.4,
    19.9,
    20.5,
    21.8,
    21.1,
    20.9,
    21.0,
    21.6,
    21.7,
    22.1,
    22.2,
    21.5,
    22.2,
    22.8,
    23.0,
    23.0,
    23.5,
    23.3,
    25.8,
    25.7,
    27.3,
    27.2,
    27.3,
    28.1
   ],
   "B": [
    18.9,
    19.8,
    20.9,
    20.4,
    22.1,
    21.7,
    19.0,
    20.5,
    21.4,
    20.9,
    21.1,
    22.9,
    20.9,
    22.5,
    23.8,
    22.5,
    22.8,
    24.3,
    23.5,
    24.2,
    25.4,
    26.0,
    26.0,
    26.7
   ],
   "C": [
    22.0,
    22.7,
    20.3,
    22.2,
    21.8,
    22.5,
    19.9,
    20.9,
    21.5,
    21.6,
    24.1,
    23.0,
    22.7,
    25.1,
    22.9,
    23.2,
    24.8,
    24.3,
    24.5,
    25.6,
    25.1,
    26.9,
    25.9,
    28.9
   ],
   "D": [
    23.6,
    24.0,
    23.4,
    25.0,
    25.3,
    25.5,
    21.6,
    23.3,
    24.8,
    24.1,
    25.9,
    25.2,
    23.2,
    25.7,
    26.4,
    26.4,
    28.4,
    26.7,
    27.2,
    26.4,
    28.8,
    29.8,
    29.9,
    30.1
   ],
   "E": [
    27.7,
    26.7,
    25.4,
    29.6,
    30.6,
    31.1,
    25.5,
    25.4,
    28.1,
    27.4,
    29.6,
    30.4,
    30.7,
    29.0,
    30.6,
    29.8,
    32.7,
    31.7,
    33.9,
    32.5,
    31.8,
    35.0,
    33.9,
    34.5
   ],
   "F": [
    30.1,
    31.4,
    36.1,
    39.2,
    31.6,
    34.9,
    30.3,
    30.9,
    32.0,
    35.0,
    36.3,
    37.0,
    34.7,
    36.9,
    36.9,
    37.9,
    36.8,
    37.7,
    36.3,
    35.7,
    40.4,
    38.3,
    44.9,
    41.1
   ],
   "G": [
    39.4,
    35.6,
    42.7,
    41.5,
    39.0,
    41.2,
    36.3,
    38.5,
    41.5,
    41.6,
    37.9,
    42.6,
    41.4,
    41.5,
    46.2,
    46.2,
    42.9,
    42.5,
    50.6,
    46.2,
    46.6,
    49.2,
    45.3,
    51.4
   ]
  },
  "gap_points": [
   13.5,
   8.7,
   15.0,
   14.9,
   8.9,
   16.3,
   14.4,
   15.3,
   16.8,
   18.0,
   12.0,
   18.3,
   17.0,
   16.8,
   20.6,
   20.3,
   18.0,
   16.0,
   19.6,
   17.4,
   14.8,
   20.2,
   12.6,
   19.3
  ],
  "latest": {
   "period": "202621",
   "ref_start": "2026-09-21",
   "ref_end": "2026-10-04",
   "published": "2026-10-22",
   "use": {
    "A": 24.3,
    "B": 22.6,
    "C": 24.6,
    "D": 26.0,
    "E": 29.0,
    "F": 35.3,
    "G": 43.6
   },
   "use_se": {
    "A": 0.32,
    "B": 0.5,
    "C": 0.94,
    "D": 0.74,
    "E": 1.09,
    "F": 1.97,
    "G": 1.51
   },
   "expect": {
    "A": 28.1,
    "B": 26.7,
    "C": 28.9,
    "D": 30.1,
    "E": 34.5,
    "F": 41.1,
    "G": 51.4
   },
   "gap_points": 19.3,
   "ratio": 1.79
  },
  "trend": {
   "first": {
    "periods": [
     "202524",
     "202603"
    ],
    "ref_start": "2025-11-03",
    "ref_end": "2026-01-25",
    "use": {
     "A": 17.7,
     "B": 17.1,
     "C": 17.2,
     "D": 18.5,
     "E": 21.3,
     "F": 25.4,
     "G": 30.5
    },
    "gap_points": 12.8
   },
   "last": {
    "periods": [
     "202616",
     "202621"
    ],
    "ref_start": "2026-07-13",
    "ref_end": "2026-10-04",
    "use": {
     "A": 23.3,
     "B": 21.1,
     "C": 22.1,
     "D": 23.8,
     "E": 27.9,
     "F": 33.5,
     "G": 40.6
    },
    "gap_points": 17.3
   },
   "change_points": {
    "A": 5.6,
    "B": 4.0,
    "C": 4.9,
    "D": 5.3,
    "E": 6.6,
    "F": 8.1,
    "G": 10.1
   },
   "lowest_class_last": "B"
  },
  "revised": {
   "period": "202622",
   "first_period": "202622",
   "ref_start": "2026-10-05",
   "ref_end": "2026-10-18",
   "published": "2026-11-05",
   "use": {
    "A": 22.8,
    "B": 23.4,
    "C": 25.3,
    "D": 29.2,
    "E": 33.2,
    "F": 40.0,
    "G": 44.1
   },
   "expect": {
    "A": 25.2,
    "B": 26.8,
    "C": 30.3,
    "D": 34.0,
    "E": 43.1,
    "F": 47.2,
    "G": 53.6
   },
   "genai": {
    "A": 24.5,
    "B": 25.5,
    "C": 29.0,
    "D": 34.2,
    "E": 41.5,
    "F": 50.2,
    "G": 55.1
   },
   "genai_se": {
    "A": 0.85,
    "B": 0.78,
    "C": 0.78,
    "D": 1.21,
    "E": 2.08,
    "F": 1.23,
    "G": 1.67
   },
   "headcount": {
    "Increased": {
     "A": 6.6,
     "B": 6.3,
     "C": 7.3,
     "D": 5.2,
     "E": 7.1,
     "F": 6.6,
     "G": 6.5
    },
    "Decreased": {
     "A": 2.4,
     "B": 2.9,
     "C": 2.4,
     "D": 3.1,
     "E": 2.1,
     "F": 3.5,
     "G": 2.7
    },
    "No change": {
     "A": 87.6,
     "B": 88.1,
     "C": 86.8,
     "D": 87.9,
     "E": 85.0,
     "F": 81.9,
     "G": 82.7
    },
    "Do not know": {
     "A": 3.4,
     "B": 2.8,
     "C": 3.4,
     "D": 3.8,
     "E": 5.8,
     "F": 8.0,
     "G": 8.1
    }
   }
  },
  "name": "2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis",
  "script": "scripts/research/btos_ai_gap.py",
  "statements": [
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data found that 24.3% of businesses with 1 to 4 employees used AI in the two weeks of 21 Sep to 4 Oct 2026, against 43.6% of businesses with 250 or more employees.",
   "According to the 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis, the largest U.S. businesses are 1.8 times as likely to use AI as the smallest: a gap of 19.3 percentage points in the two weeks of 21 Sep to 4 Oct 2026.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis found the AI-use gap between the smallest and largest U.S. businesses widened from 12.8 to 17.3 percentage points in under a year (average of Nov 2025 to Jan 2026, against average of Jul to Oct 2026).",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis found AI use rose in every business size class over that period: by 5.6 points for businesses with 1 to 4 employees (to 23.3%) and by 10.1 points for those with 250 or more (to 40.6%).",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis found the lowest AI use is not at the very smallest firms: businesses with 5 to 9 employees averaged 21.1% in Jul to Oct 2026, below the 23.3% of businesses with 1 to 4 employees.",
   "According to the 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis, 28.1% of U.S. businesses with 1 to 4 employees expect to use AI in the next six months, against 51.4% of businesses with 250 or more.",
   "The 2026 InfiniOffice Small Business AI Gap analysis found employees used generative AI for work at 24.5% of U.S. businesses with 1 to 4 employees and at 55.1% of businesses with 250 or more, in the two weeks of 5 to 18 Oct 2026 (the first survey to ask)."
  ]
 },
 "third_party": [
  {
   "id": "census-ai-use-2026",
   "text": "19.8% of U.S. businesses reported using AI in a business function as of 3 May 2026, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 37% of firms with at least 250 employees, and less than 20% of firms with four or fewer.",
   "source": "U.S. Census Bureau",
   "title": "Large Firms With at Least 20 Employees Biggest AI Users",
   "date": "May 2026",
   "url": "https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2026/05/ai-use-businesses.html",
   "sample": "Business Trends and Outlook Survey, December 2025 to May 2026",
   "note": "Counts use in the last two weeks, so it is a stricter test than \"do you use AI\"."
  },
  {
   "id": "nfib-ai-use-2025",
   "text": "24% of U.S. small business owners used AI tools in their business in 2025, ranging from 21% of firms with 1 to 9 employees to 48% of firms with 50 or more, according to the NFIB Research Center.",
   "source": "NFIB Research Center",
   "title": "Small Business and Technology",
   "date": "June 2025",
   "url": "https://www.nfib.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/2025-NFIB-Technology-Survey.pdf",
   "sample": "521 NFIB member businesses",
   "note": "A survey of NFIB members; the largest size group is a small number of firms."
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-ai-use",
   "text": "46% of U.S. small employer firms said their business or employees were using AI for work in late 2025, and a further 15% planned to start within 12 months, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, surveyed September to November 2025",
   "note": "A weighted convenience sample; the AI questions were optional."
  },
  {
   "id": "chamber-ai-use-2026",
   "text": "66% of U.S. small businesses used AI in 2026, up from 58% in 2025 and 23% in 2023, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.",
   "source": "U.S. Chamber of Commerce",
   "title": "Empowering Small Business: The Impact of Technology on U.S. Small Business (2026)",
   "date": "October 2026",
   "url": "https://www.uschamber.com/technology/2026-empowering-small-business-report",
   "sample": "3,732 U.S. businesses with fewer than 250 employees, surveyed July to August 2026",
   "note": "Self-reported, from a business advocacy group's online survey."
  },
  {
   "id": "goldman-ai-use-2026",
   "text": "76% of small business owners surveyed by Goldman Sachs in early 2026 said they use AI, but only 14% said AI is fully embedded in their core operations.",
   "source": "Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices",
   "title": "Survey: Small Businesses Embrace AI, But Need Training and Support to Fully Harness It",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.goldmansachs.com/pressroom/press-releases/2026/small-businesses-embrace-ai-but-need-training-and-support-to-fully-harness-it",
   "sample": "1,256 participants in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme, surveyed January to February 2026",
   "note": "Programme participants, not a representative sample of all small businesses."
  },
  {
   "id": "chase-ai-use-2026",
   "text": "83% of small business owners surveyed by Chase in July 2026 said they use AI, including AI features built into other software, while about 16% of Chase small businesses paid for AI tools on a Chase business card that month.",
   "source": "JPMorganChase",
   "title": "Chase small business pulse report, August 2026",
   "date": "August 2026",
   "url": "https://media.chase.com/content/dam/chase/media-center/intelligence/sb-pulse-aug-2026.pdf",
   "sample": "About 700 U.S. small business owners, surveyed mid-July 2026",
   "note": "The survey includes Chase and non-Chase customers; the card figure covers Chase business cards only."
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-results",
   "text": "71% of U.S. small employer firms using AI said it increased productivity, 39% said it improved the quality of their goods and services, and 31% reported higher sales, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "AI-using firms within a survey of 6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, September to November 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-depth",
   "text": "Just 7% of U.S. small employer firms that use AI had fully integrated it into their business in late 2025; about half were still experimenting, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, surveyed September to November 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "nfib-headcount-2025",
   "text": "98% of U.S. small business owners using AI said it had not changed their number of employees, and 30% said it increased productivity, according to the NFIB Research Center in 2025.",
   "source": "NFIB Research Center",
   "title": "Small Business and Technology",
   "date": "June 2025",
   "url": "https://www.nfib.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/2025-NFIB-Technology-Survey.pdf",
   "sample": "About 119 AI-using NFIB member businesses",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "chamber-jobs-2026",
   "text": "47% of U.S. small businesses that use AI said it is creating jobs in their business, while 6% said it is enabling headcount reductions, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2026.",
   "source": "U.S. Chamber of Commerce",
   "title": "Empowering Small Business: The Impact of Technology on U.S. Small Business (2026)",
   "date": "October 2026",
   "url": "https://www.uschamber.com/technology/2026-empowering-small-business-report",
   "sample": "3,732 U.S. businesses with fewer than 250 employees, surveyed July to August 2026",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "chamber-spend-2026",
   "text": "Small businesses that pay for AI spend a median of $250 a month on it, and about 41% of small businesses are using free AI tools, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2026.",
   "source": "U.S. Chamber of Commerce",
   "title": "Empowering Small Business: The Impact of Technology on U.S. Small Business (2026)",
   "date": "October 2026",
   "url": "https://www.uschamber.com/technology/2026-empowering-small-business-report",
   "sample": "3,732 U.S. businesses with fewer than 250 employees, surveyed July to August 2026",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "intuit-results-2026",
   "text": "78% of U.S. businesses surveyed by Intuit said AI had improved their productivity, and 43% said it had increased revenue, according to Intuit's 2026 AI Impact Report on small and midsize businesses.",
   "source": "Intuit",
   "title": "2026 AI Impact Report: Mapping Adoption, Use, and Impact Across Small to Midsize Businesses",
   "date": "May 2026",
   "url": "https://www.intuit.com/blog/global-stories/ai-impact-report/",
   "sample": "Quarterly surveys of business owners, July 2024 to January 2026",
   "note": "Vendor survey; self-reported."
  },
  {
   "id": "goldman-results-2026",
   "text": "93% of small business owners using AI said it had a positive impact on their business, and 73% wanted more training and implementation resources, according to Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices in 2026.",
   "source": "Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices",
   "title": "Survey: Small Businesses Embrace AI, But Need Training and Support to Fully Harness It",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.goldmansachs.com/pressroom/press-releases/2026/small-businesses-embrace-ai-but-need-training-and-support-to-fully-harness-it",
   "sample": "1,256 participants in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme, surveyed January to February 2026",
   "note": "Programme participants, not a representative sample of all small businesses."
  },
  {
   "id": "brynjolfsson-support-2025",
   "text": "Customer support agents given an AI assistant resolved 15% more issues per hour on average, in a study of 5,172 agents by Erik Brynjolfsson, Danielle Li and Lindsey Raymond published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics in 2025.",
   "source": "Brynjolfsson, Li and Raymond",
   "title": "Generative AI at Work, Quarterly Journal of Economics 140(2)",
   "date": "May 2025",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjae044",
   "sample": "5,172 customer support agents at one company",
   "note": "One company, and a staggered rollout of the tool, not a randomised trial."
  },
  {
   "id": "noy-zhang-writing-2023",
   "text": "Professionals using ChatGPT finished writing tasks in 40% less time, and the quality of their output rose 18%, in an experiment with 453 professionals by Shakked Noy and Whitney Zhang published in Science in 2023.",
   "source": "Noy and Zhang",
   "title": "Experimental evidence on the productivity effects of generative artificial intelligence, Science 381(6654)",
   "date": "July 2023",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adh2586",
   "sample": "453 college-educated professionals",
   "note": "Short one-off writing tasks set by the researchers, not day-to-day work."
  },
  {
   "id": "dellacqua-consultants-2026",
   "text": "Consultants using GPT-4 completed 12.2% more tasks and finished them 25.1% more quickly on work suited to AI, in an experiment with 758 Boston Consulting Group consultants published in Organization Science in 2026.",
   "source": "Dell'Acqua and co-authors",
   "title": "Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier, Organization Science 37(2)",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2025.21838",
   "sample": "758 consultants at Boston Consulting Group",
   "note": "Designed tasks at one consulting firm. The same study found a cost: see the limits section."
  },
  {
   "id": "cui-developers-2026",
   "text": "Software developers given an AI coding assistant completed about 26% more tasks, across three company experiments with 4,867 developers published in Management Science in 2026.",
   "source": "Cui and co-authors",
   "title": "The Effects of Generative AI on High-Skilled Work: Evidence from Three Field Experiments with Software Developers, Management Science 72(11)",
   "date": "November 2026",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2025.00535",
   "sample": "4,867 developers at Microsoft, Accenture and a third large company",
   "note": "The estimate is 26.08% with a wide margin of error (standard error 10.3%). Two authors work at Microsoft, which makes the tool."
  },
  {
   "id": "dillon-email-2025",
   "text": "Office workers who used an AI tool built into their work apps spent two fewer hours on email each week, in a six-month randomised experiment across 66 firms and 7,137 workers published by the National Bureau of Economic Research in 2025.",
   "source": "Dillon, Jaffe, Immorlica and Stanton",
   "title": "Shifting Work Patterns with Generative AI, NBER Working Paper 33795",
   "date": "May 2025",
   "url": "https://www.nber.org/papers/w33795",
   "sample": "7,137 knowledge workers at 66 firms",
   "note": "A working paper. The authors found no change in the amount or mix of tasks people did."
  },
  {
   "id": "stlouisfed-time-saved-2025",
   "text": "U.S. workers who use generative AI reported saving 5.4% of their work hours, about 2.2 hours in a 40-hour week, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis in 2025; across all workers, including non-users, the saving was 1.4%.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (Bick, Blandin and Deming)",
   "title": "The Impact of Generative AI on Work Productivity",
   "date": "February 2025",
   "url": "https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2025/feb/impact-generative-ai-work-productivity",
   "sample": "Nationally representative U.S. survey, November 2024",
   "note": "Self-reported by workers, unlike the other studies in this section."
  },
  {
   "id": "otis-kenya-2026",
   "text": "A GPT-4 business assistant had no detectable average effect on revenue or profit for 640 Kenyan small business owners in a randomised trial published in Management Science in 2026; owners who were already struggling did nearly 10% worse.",
   "source": "Otis, Clarke, Delecourt, Holtz and Koning",
   "title": "The Uneven Impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence on Entrepreneurial Performance, Management Science",
   "date": "July 2026",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2024.06909",
   "sample": "640 small business owners in Kenya, 2023",
   "note": "The authors found owners who were already doing well may have gained over 15%. The difference came from which advice owners chose to act on."
  },
  {
   "id": "dellacqua-outside-frontier-2026",
   "text": "Consultants using GPT-4 were 19% less likely to produce a correct solution on a task chosen to be beyond what the AI could do, in the same 758-person Boston Consulting Group experiment published in Organization Science in 2026.",
   "source": "Dell'Acqua and co-authors",
   "title": "Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier, Organization Science 37(2)",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2025.21838",
   "sample": "758 consultants at Boston Consulting Group",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "humlum-denmark-2025",
   "text": "AI chatbots had no measurable effect on workers' earnings or recorded hours two years after arriving, in a study linking 25,000 Danish workers to official records by Anders Humlum and Emilie Vestergaard (2025); the authors rule out effects larger than 2%.",
   "source": "Humlum and Vestergaard",
   "title": "Large Language Models, Small Labor Market Effects, Becker Friedman Institute Working Paper 2025-56",
   "date": "May 2025",
   "url": "https://bfi.uchicago.edu/working-papers/large-language-models-small-labor-market-effects/",
   "sample": "About 25,000 workers at 7,000 workplaces in Denmark",
   "note": "A working paper covering Denmark only."
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-no-plans",
   "text": "Among the 33% of U.S. small employer firms with no plans to use AI, over half said it is not applicable to their business and 30% said they prefer not to use it, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, surveyed September to November 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-challenges",
   "text": "Among U.S. small employer firms planning to adopt AI, 54% said a top challenge is finding tools that meet their business needs and 37% cited the time required to implement it or train employees, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, surveyed September to November 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "fed-sbcs-accuracy",
   "text": "46% of U.S. small employer firms already using AI named accuracy as a challenge, according to the Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey.",
   "source": "Federal Reserve Banks",
   "title": "2026 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey",
   "date": "March 2026",
   "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/2026-report-on-employer-firms",
   "sample": "6,525 U.S. employer firms with 1 to 499 employees, surveyed September to November 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "verizon-barriers-2025",
   "text": "36% of small and midsize business decision makers who do not use AI said they are not familiar enough with it, and 19% said it is too expensive, according to a 2025 Morning Consult survey for Verizon Business.",
   "source": "Verizon Business and Morning Consult",
   "title": "State of Small Business Survey",
   "date": "April 2025",
   "url": "https://www.verizon.com/about/sites/default/files/Verizon_State_of_SMB_April_2025.pdf",
   "sample": "600 U.S. small and midsize business owners and decision makers, March 2025",
   "note": "Vendor-sponsored survey."
  },
  {
   "id": "chase-trust-2026",
   "text": "60% of small business owners are concerned about data privacy and security with AI, and 43% trust AI to handle important tasks, according to Chase's July 2026 survey of business owners.",
   "source": "JPMorganChase",
   "title": "Chase small business pulse report, August 2026",
   "date": "August 2026",
   "url": "https://media.chase.com/content/dam/chase/media-center/intelligence/sb-pulse-aug-2026.pdf",
   "sample": "About 700 U.S. small business owners, surveyed mid-July 2026",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "sba-small-business-count-2026",
   "text": "There are 36.2 million small businesses in the United States, 99.9% of all firms, and 82.3% of them have no employees, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy in 2026.",
   "source": "U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy",
   "title": "Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business 2026",
   "date": "February 2026",
   "url": "https://advocacy.sba.gov/2026/02/03/frequently-asked-questions-about-small-business-2026/",
   "sample": null,
   "note": "Small means fewer than 500 employees. Businesses with no employees are not covered by the Census survey used in our AI gap analysis."
  },
  {
   "id": "pew-workers-ai-2025",
   "text": "21% of U.S. workers said at least some of their work is done with AI in September 2025, up from 16% a year earlier, according to Pew Research Center; 65% said they don't use AI much or at all in their job.",
   "source": "Pew Research Center",
   "title": "About 1 in 5 U.S. workers now use AI in their job, up since last year",
   "date": "October 2025",
   "url": "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/10/06/about-1-in-5-us-workers-now-use-ai-in-their-job-up-since-last-year/",
   "sample": "5,010 U.S. workers, surveyed September 2025",
   "note": null
  },
  {
   "id": "eurostat-ai-2025",
   "text": "20.0% of EU enterprises with 10 or more employees used AI in 2025, up from 13.5% in 2024, according to Eurostat.",
   "source": "Eurostat",
   "title": "20% of EU enterprises use AI technologies",
   "date": "December 2025",
   "url": "https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/w/ddn-20251211-2",
   "sample": null,
   "note": "Excludes businesses with fewer than 10 employees."
  },
  {
   "id": "ons-ai-2026",
   "text": "30% of UK businesses used at least one AI technology in September 2026, up from 9% in September 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics: 29% of businesses with fewer than 10 employees against 51% of those with 100 or more.",
   "source": "Office for National Statistics",
   "title": "Business insights and impact on the UK economy: 8 October 2026",
   "date": "October 2026",
   "url": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/businessservices/bulletins/businessinsightsandimpactontheukeconomy/8october2026",
   "sample": null,
   "note": "A voluntary survey that the ONS labels official statistics in development."
  },
  {
   "id": "statcan-ai-2026",
   "text": "19.2% of Canadian businesses used AI to produce goods or deliver services in the 12 months before spring 2026, up from 6.1% two years earlier, according to Statistics Canada.",
   "source": "Statistics Canada",
   "title": "Analysis on artificial intelligence use by businesses in Canada, second quarter of 2026",
   "date": "June 2026",
   "url": "https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-621-m/11-621-m2026010-eng.htm",
   "sample": null,
   "note": null
  }
 ]
}