Nearly every company in Germany is now dealing with artificial intelligence (AI). A survey released by the IT‑industry association Bitkom on Wednesday showed that 41 % of businesses with 20 or more employees already use AI, and an additional 48 % are planning or discussing implementation. Just a year ago, only 17 % had adopted the technology, while 40 % were still in the discussion phase.
For 77 % of the companies that are currently using AI, the technology has improved their competitive position. Fifty‑two percent report a measurable contribution of AI to their business success, and two‑thirds (66 %) intend to expand its use further.
Overall, the majority of firms view their previous digitalisation efforts positively. Seventy‑seven percent say that digitalisation has mainly benefited them, while 16 % claim it has brought great advantages. Yet only ten percent consider the German economy to be a global leader in digitalisation. Conversely, 16 % place it among laggards and 7 % even view it as behind. The larger majority (63 %) see Germany as average. Moreover, 78 % of companies regard the current economic crisis as a crisis of sluggish digitalisation.
Despite the largely favourable assessment of digitalisation effects, about half of German firms (51 %) struggle to manage the transition. Thirteen percent believe that digitalisation endangers their very existence-up from seven percent a year ago, and 4 % in 2024. Sixty‑five percent feel that competitors who adopted digitalisation early are now ahead, while one in five (20 %) fears being threatened by emerging start‑ups.
The survey, conducted by Bitkom Research, interviewed 604 companies with 20 or more employees by phone between the 2nd and 6th calendar weeks of 2026.