Europe Sees 8x Surge in AI Agent Use Among SMBs But Lags Global Leaders, OpenAI Report Finds

Europe Shifts from Generative AI to Agentic AI

AI adoption in Europe has reached a turning point, with agentic AI now accounting for more than 55% of output tokens among OpenAI's enterprise and business customers in the EU, according to a new OpenAI report1

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. The remaining 45% comes from more basic generative AI applications. This marks a fundamental shift in how European businesses interact with artificial intelligence—moving from simple question-answering to deploying AI agents that complete entire tasks from start to finish.

The metrics focus on output tokens rather than the proportion of companies using AI, meaning businesses adopting agentic AI are producing significantly more output than those sticking with traditional generative AI tools1

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. According to OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar, "Europe is now in a new era of AI, with tools that can carry out tasks for people"1

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Small Businesses Drive 8-Fold Surge in AI Agent Adoption

The surge in agentic AI usage has been particularly dramatic among small and medium-sized businesses. Weekly active use of AI agents among SMBs in the European Union increased more than eightfold between early May and October 5, 20242

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. This acceleration coincided with the launch of ChatGPT Work in July, an agentic tool built into OpenAI's platform that made advanced capabilities previously reserved for large enterprises accessible to smaller organizations1

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Agent use among small businesses matters significantly for Europe's economy. SMBs account for 63% of private-sector employment in the EU and contribute more than 5 trillion euros to the bloc's economy annually2

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. The findings suggest smaller businesses are now experimenting with capabilities that were previously only associated with larger companies, potentially leveling the playing field in terms of AI-driven productivity gains.

AI Adoption Gap in Europe Persists Across Member States

Despite overall growth, significant disparities exist across the European Union. Lithuania leads with agentic AI accounting for 85% of output tokens in September, followed by Cyprus at 81% and Hungary at 79%1

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. On the other end, Slovenia recorded just 22%, Austria 26%, and Portugal 29%1

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Growth rates in AI agent adoption also varied considerably. Belgium saw a 12.1-fold increase from early May levels, Italy recorded 10.8 times growth, and Luxembourg achieved a 10-fold increase. Every EU country recorded growth of more than five times over the period2

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Europe Trails North America in Frontier Firms

The AI adoption gap in Europe becomes more pronounced when examining frontier firms—companies in the top 10% ranked by AI output tokens per active user. Countries in the EU account for only 10% of these global leaders, while North America dominates with 65%1

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. The EU also trails EMEA at 11% and APAC at 13%1

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Growth rates tell a similar story. Non-EU frontier firms saw 12.9x growth between May and September, compared to just 6.1x for EU firms1

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. In September, leading EU firms generated more than four times the output tokens per active user compared to typical EU firms. However, global frontier firms outside the EU generated more than twice the output of their European counterparts2

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Closing the Gap Requires Focus on Accessibility and Workforce Skills

OpenAI frames these findings not as a setback but as an opportunity. The report emphasizes that European businesses need to move beyond experimentation and trials to realize AI's full potential1

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. Key priorities include improving accessibility and affordability of advanced AI tools, along with building workforce skills and confidence in using these technologies effectively.

Friar stated that "giving people the tools, skills and confidence to use AI well will help build stronger businesses and growing economies, with benefits felt across Europe"1

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. The report suggests that addressing these barriers could help Europe strengthen business performance and economic productivity while narrowing the gap with global leaders in AI-intensive operations.