Exclusive: How small businesses in California use AI
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Small businesses in California are embracing AI, but how they're using it and what they're willing to spend varies, according to Goldman Sachs data exclusively shared with Axios.
The big picture: Companies nationwide, big and small, are figuring out how best to incorporate AI into their workforces and what that means for productivity.
Zoom in: A survey of 95 California small business owners who graduated from or participated in Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Small Businesses program found 93% use AI in their workplaces.
- Of those using AI, 27% say they've fully integrated it into their operations, while 49% are actively using it in some areas and 24% are still experimenting.
- The most common uses for California small businesses were for productivity (taking notes, writing emails and documenting processes) and generating written marketing content, both at 62%.
- Use for strategy and business development followed at 61%.
Zoom out: Business owners across the country have various reasons for using AI.
- Nationwide, 86% of the 2,474 small business owners surveyed say they use AI, with productivity (66%) and generating written marketing content (64%) among the most common uses.
- In Texas, 71% of surveyed AI users say they use it for generating written marketing content, while 64% use it for productivity.
By the numbers: Spending habits are also pretty variable.
- In California, 68% of surveyed businesses using AI spend $100 or less per month, while 32% spend more than $100.
- About 14% of California respondents using AI said they don't pay for it at all.
Stunning stat: For all the talk about AI's explosive growth in the enterprise, Goldman's data shows that 73% of the small businesses surveyed nationwide are spending $100 or less per month on AI.
The bottom line: AI is becoming more integrated into the workplace, but why businesses use it, and what they're willing to spend, are not always the same.