UK Business AI Adoption at a glance
The share of UK businesses that said they currently use at least one AI technology, 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026. Every figure below names what it covers and how many businesses answered.
- 29.7%UK businesses using AI The share of UK businesses that said they currently use at least one AI technology, 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026. UK businesses of all sizes trading in the survey period, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- +0.8Change since June 2026 (points) How far the share using AI moved since the survey last asked, in percentage points (wave 159 to wave 165). as above, against the previous time the question was asked · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- +6.2Change over a year (points) How far the share using AI moved in about a year, in percentage points (wave 141 to wave 165). as above, against the same question a year earlier · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- 28.7%Firms with 0-9 staff The share of the smallest UK businesses, with fewer than 10 staff, that use at least one AI technology. UK businesses with 0-9 staff, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- 36.1%Firms with 10-49 staff The share of small UK businesses with 10 to 49 staff that use at least one AI technology. UK businesses with 10-49 staff, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- 50.9%Firms with 250+ staff The share of large UK businesses, with 250 or more staff, that use at least one AI technology. UK businesses with 250 or more staff, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- 19%Using AI to write text The share of UK businesses that use AI to generate text with large language models, the kind of AI behind ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini. UK businesses of all sizes, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
- 6.2%Not sure if they use AI The share of UK businesses that answered "not sure" when asked whether they use any AI technology. UK businesses of all sizes, weighted by count · n = 9,933 · ONS BICS wave 165
UK Business AI Adoption: the trend since 2023
The share of UK businesses using AI in every survey since the question was first asked, for all businesses and by size. The latest point is this edition. 13 points in all.
| Date | All businesses | 0-9 staff | 10-49 staff | 250+ staff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 September 2023 to 1 October 2023 | 9.4% | 9.1% | 11.3% | 18.7% |
| 11 December 2023 to 24 December 2023 | 9.9% | 9.6% | 10.9% | 19.1% |
| 18 March 2024 to 31 March 2024 | 13.8% | 13.9% | 12.8% | 23.8% |
| 17 June 2024 to 30 June 2024 | 12.7% | 12.5% | 13.7% | 25.4% |
| 16 September 2024 to 29 September 2024 | 14.7% | 14.4% | 16.7% | 30.4% |
| 16 December 2024 to 29 December 2024 | 16.1% | 15.9% | 17.4% | 28.2% |
| 17 March 2025 to 30 March 2025 | 17.8% | 17.6% | 19.7% | 31.2% |
| 16 June 2025 to 29 June 2025 | 20.5% | 19.9% | 23.9% | 36% |
| 15 September 2025 to 28 September 2025 | 23.5% | 23.1% | 25.8% | 39.4% |
| 15 December 2025 to 28 December 2025 | 24.7% | 24.3% | 27.2% | 44.4% |
| 16 March 2026 to 29 March 2026 | 25.9% | 25.1% | 30.3% | 44.6% |
| 15 June 2026 to 28 June 2026 | 28.9% | 28.2% | 33.1% | 48.6% |
| 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026 | 29.7% | 28.7% | 36.1% | 50.9% |
UK Business AI Adoption by size and sector
Every size band and sector the ONS publishes, this survey against the last. Sectors the ONS withholds because too few businesses answered are marked withheld, never estimated.
| 0-9 staff | 28.7% | 28.2% | +0.5 pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-49 staff | 36.1% | 33.1% | +3 pts |
| 50-99 staff | 45.8% | 42.7% | +3.1 pts |
| 100-249 staff | 50.4% | 45.1% | +5.3 pts |
| 250+ staff | 50.9% | 48.6% | +2.3 pts |
| Information and communication | 60% | 58.3% | +1.7 pts |
| Professional, scientific and technical activities | 42% | 45.8% | -3.8 pts |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 40.9% | 32.2% | +8.7 pts |
| Education | 37.7% | 50.7% | -13 pts |
| Administrative and support service activities | 34.9% | 29.5% | +5.4 pts |
| Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 32% | 20.5% | +11.5 pts |
| Manufacturing | 20.2% | 21.6% | -1.4 pts |
| Accommodation and food service activities | 17.9% | 20.6% | -2.7 pts |
| Real estate activities | 15.2% | 25.1% | -9.9 pts |
| Transportation and storage | 14.2% | 19.4% | -5.2 pts |
| Construction | 14.1% | 13% | +1.1 pts |
| Human health and social work activities | 13.1% | 21% | -7.9 pts |
| Other service activities | 10.9% | 22% | -11.1 pts |
| Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities | withheld | withheld | - |
What changed in October 2026?
The share of UK businesses using AI is 29.7%, up 0.8 percentage points since the survey last asked, in June 2026, and up 6.2 points on a year earlier. When the question was first asked, in October 2023, it was 9.4%.
The gap by size is wide: 28.7% of firms with fewer than 10 staff use AI, against 36.1% of firms with 10-49 staff and 50.9% of firms with 250 or more. By sector, information and communication uses it most (60%) and other service activities least (10.9%). The most used kind of AI is text generation (19% of businesses), then visual content creation (14.4%).
How fast is UK business AI adoption growing?
In October 2023, 9.4% of UK businesses used AI; in October 2026 it was 29.7% - 3.2 times as many, across 13 surveys. Firms with 100-249 staff grew fastest, from 15% to 50.4%, while the smallest firms, with fewer than 10 staff, went from 9.1% to 28.7%.
The climb has been steady rather than sudden: the share rose in 11 of the 12 gaps between surveys. The trend chart above shows every point, and the ONS release on AI in UK businesses explains the survey behind it.
Which UK sectors use AI most and least?
Information and communication (60%), Professional, scientific and technical activities (42%), Arts, entertainment and recreation (40.9%) lead; Other service activities (10.9%), Human health and social work activities (13.1%), Construction (14.1%) trail. The ONS withholds some sectors when too few businesses answered, so the full table above lists every sector with a figure and marks the rest as withheld.
Sectors built on information work - writing, analysis, customer messages - sit at the top, which fits what today's AI does best: text. If your sector sits near the bottom, that is an opening: the jobs AI does well turn up in businesses of every kind, and our guide to where to start with AI shows how to pick the first one.
What do these figures mean for a small business?
Most UK businesses still do not use AI: 64.1% said they use none of the technologies the survey lists, and 6.2% were not sure. A small business that starts now is still ahead of most of its peers.
The businesses that get value from AI start with one repetitive job, check its work before a customer sees it, and keep personal data safe - the ICO's guidance on AI and data protection sets out the rules. The UK government's AI Playbook applies the same principles in the public sector, and our services set it up for you at a fixed price.
How does this compare with other UK surveys?
Other surveys measure AI use differently, so their figures differ. The government's AI Adoption Research interviewed businesses about AI in more depth, and the Scottish Government publishes its own cut of the same ONS survey for Scottish firms.
This report follows one question from one official survey over time, so the trend is consistent even where its level differs from others. For a read on how news covers AI in the same months, see our AI News Tone report.
How is UK business AI adoption measured?
A business "uses AI" when it says it currently uses at least one AI technology the survey lists - every answer except "does not currently use" and "not sure". Shares are the ONS weighted estimates (weighted by business count) for UK businesses trading in the survey period, all sizes, with Mining and quarrying folded into the total by the ONS. Cells the ONS withholds for confidentiality are shown as withheld, never estimated.
The numbers come from the ONS Business Insights and Conditions Survey, wave 165, read from the published spreadsheet by a script and frozen with this edition. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What this report is and is not
The survey asks about AI every sixth wave (about once a quarter), so each edition is one survey period, not a monthly average.
Shares are of businesses, not of workers or turnover: a sole trader counts the same as a large firm.
Businesses answer for themselves; "not sure" is reported separately rather than counted either way.
For where to begin with AI in your own business, read where to start with AI, and for the full set of our data, see every report.
Corrections to this edition
None. This edition has not changed since it was published; any change would be listed here with its date and reason.
How to cite this report
Quote any figure with this line and a link. The data is free to reuse, including commercially, under CC BY 4.0.
Eclipse Labs AI (2026). UK Business AI Adoption - October 2026 edition. Edition 1. https://eclipse-labs.ai/reports/uk-business-ai-adoption-2026-10. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Questions about UK business AI adoption
29.7% of UK businesses said they currently use at least one AI technology in the ONS survey of 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026, up 0.8 percentage points since the survey last asked. When the question was first asked, in October 2023, the share was 9.4%. The ONS AI release has the full tables, and this report's home tracks every wave.
Yes. In the ONS survey of 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026, 28.7% of businesses with fewer than 10 staff used AI, against 36.1% of those with 10 to 49 staff and 50.9% of those with 250 or more. Larger firms are more likely to have the budget and staff to try it. Our guide on where to start with AI is written for the smallest firms.
In the ONS survey of 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026, the most used kind of AI was text generation, by 19% of UK businesses, then visual content creation (14.4%) and data processing (8.5%). Text generation is what large language models such as ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini do. Our guide to which AI model to use compares the main text tools.
In the ONS survey of 21 September 2026 to 4 October 2026, information and communication had the highest share of businesses using AI, at 60%, and other service activities the lowest, at 10.9%. Some sectors are withheld by the ONS when too few businesses answered. The full sector table, with the change since the last survey, is on this page and in its CSV.
The Office for National Statistics asks its AI question in every sixth wave of its fortnightly business survey, so a new figure arrives about once a quarter. We publish a new edition of this report each time, built by a script from the published spreadsheet. The ONS dataset page lists every wave, and our reports explain the method.