- The total number of AI users is actually flat, a major new report finds
- Regular users have increased slightly, indicating more use cases
- Companies are also focusing on strengthening their data base
New research from Gallup has claimed that AI adoption could actually be flatlining after an initial burst of excitement, with daily use of AI increasing just two percentage points in Q4 2025, and frequent use of AI increasing three percentage points quarter-on-quarter.
In fact, the report found that the overall total number of AI users remained flat, and half (49%) of US workers say they never use AI in their role at all.
The numbers also highlight sector biases, with technology, finance and professional users most likely to use AI, along with education such as college, university and K-12.
How many workers are actually using artificial intelligence?
The biggest increase came from so-called “remotely enabled” roles, or those that are desk-based, more than doubling from 28% in 2023 to 66% in 2025. Non-remote roles appear to be about two years behind, at 32%.
Gallup also found that executives (69%) and managers (55%) are more likely to use artificial intelligence compared to individual contributors (40%).
But more importantly, there is a clear distinction between implementation and actual use. Separate new research from Hitachi Vantara found that most companies (98%) are using, piloting or exploring artificial intelligence, suggesting they could invest blindly without identifying specific use cases.
Poor setups are also likely to hold companies back from getting the ROI they hope for, with 95% of organizations seeing zero return on their generative AI investments due to infrastructure deficiencies.
Only 42% consider themselves data mature, although high-quality data was identified as the top driver for AI success.
“AI succeeds when the data behind it is trusted, well-managed and resilient,” commented Hitachi Vantara CEO Sheila Rohra.
Looking ahead, the two reports suggest that existing workers will rely on AI more often before more workers get on board with the technology, with clear use cases driving adoption more than pointless investments. Hitachi Vantara’s report furthers this by arguing that trust, security and governance must also be a key focus going forward to remove fears of breaches and leaks, unreliable outputs and regulatory risks.
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