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AI Statistics for Marketers in 2026 (and the Old Ones to Stop Quoting)

By Search Shift November 14, 2026
Google's top results for "ai statistics" still repeat numbers from 2017 and 2020. Here are the 2026 figures that hold up, each with its source and date.
AI Statistics for Marketers in 2026 (and the Old Ones to Stop Quoting)

Google’s top results for “ai statistics” still repeat numbers from 2017 and 2020. Here are the 2026 figures that hold up, each with its source and date.

Data from Google’s first 20 results for “ai statistics” on October 19, 2026 and from the sources in the table, each reopened in November 2026.

The post’s numbers

Number What it measures Source Data from
15 of 19 Regular results in Google’s first 20 positions for “ai statistics” that were lists of AI statistics; 6 of the 15 had a year before 2026 in the title or dated from 2017, and 5 had 2026 in the title Search Shift check Oct 2026
5 of 14 Readable list pages that quote PwC’s forecast of $15.7 trillion added to the world economy by 2030, research trade press reported on June 29, 2017 Search Shift check Oct 2026
18.8% Working-age people worldwide who used AI in June 2026 (the UAE led at 73.3% and Singapore followed at 64.3%) Microsoft AI Economy Institute Jun 2026
37% Respondents who said AI had added anything to their company’s EBIT, the same share as in 2025; 44% said AI is scaling across their enterprise, up from 38% McKinsey, The state of AI (1,719 people in 97 countries) Survey May to Jun 2026, published Aug 25, 2026
32% to 14% Respondents who expected AI to shrink their workforce in the 2025 survey, against those who said it actually had in the 2026 survey McKinsey, The state of AI 2025 and 2026 surveys
88% B2B marketers (of 861) who said their organization uses AI content creation tools; agents, AI systems that carry out several steps on their own, went from 28% of marketers a year earlier to 59% Content Marketing Institute, 2027 B2B report Survey Jun to Aug 2026, published Nov 4, 2026
68.01% Google searches that ended without a click, measured on Similarweb’s clickstream panel of real US browsers SparkToro Jan to Apr 2026
8% vs 15% Visits where 900 US adults clicked a regular result when an AI summary appeared, against when none did Pew Research Center browsing study Published Jul 22, 2025

Old numbers and what replaces them

Two-column panel titled Old AI Numbers, Newer Ones: $15.7 trillion by 2030, 72% of firms use AI, 85 million jobs displaced, India leads at 59% and 80% of marketers use AI on the old side; 37% of firms see EBIT gain, nearly 9 in 10 use AI, 14% saw AI shrink staff, UAE leads at 73.3% and 88% use AI content tools on the newer side

Old number Where it came from Use instead
AI will add $15.7 trillion by 2030 PwC forecast, reported June 2017 McKinsey, August 2026, 37% of firms see any EBIT impact
72% of businesses use AI McKinsey, May 2024 McKinsey, August 2026, nearly nine in ten
85 million jobs displaced and 97 million created World Economic Forum, 2020, a forecast for 2025 McKinsey, August 2026, 14% saw AI shrink their workforce
India leads AI adoption at 59% IBM Global AI Adoption Index 2023, reported February 2024 Microsoft, June 2026, UAE 73.3% of working-age people
80% of marketers use AI varies by report and often undated CMI, November 2026, 88% say their organization uses AI content creation tools

The India and Microsoft figures measure different things. IBM’s survey counted companies with over 1,000 employees, and Microsoft counts people.

#aisearch #seo #aeo
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