A third of EU citizens used generative AI tools this year

Some 32.7% of EU citizens aged between 16 and 74 used generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) tools this year, new data from Eurostat has found.

Around a quarter (25.1%) said that they used gen AI tools for ‘personal purposes’, such as to create images, videos or other data, while 15.1% used them for work and 9.4% for formal education.

In terms of the EU member states in which gen AI was utilised the most, Denmark leads the way, with 48.4% of citizens using said tools this year, followed by Estonia (46.6%), Malta (46.5%) and Finland (46.3%).

At the other end of the scale, the lowest share of people using gen AI was recorded in Romania (17.8%), Italy (19.9%) and Bulgaria (22.5%).

Use of ICT technologies

The findings were taken from a broader EU survey on the use of ICT technologies in households and by individuals, which was published by Eurostat.

Other findings from the study include that 94% of EU citizens used the internet within the three months of the survey being taken, with just 4% going the whole year without using the internet.

Elsewhere, mobile devices were used to connect to the internet by close to nine in 10 EU citizens, more than half (52%) used their electronic identification to access online services in the EU, and three quarters (74%) of EU individuals ordered or bought services or goods online this year.

Previous data from Eurostat indicated that one in five EU businesses with ten or more employees reported using AI technologies in their operations this year, marking an increase from 13.5% the previous year. Again, Denmark reported the highest share of businesses using AI (42.0%), followed by Finland (37.8%) and Sweden at (35.0%). Read more here and here.

Percentage of EU Citizens Who Have Used Generative AI Tools in the Past Three Months (%)