Adoption & Economy
Microsoft reports global generative AI use reached 18.8% of the working-age population
Microsoft’s Q2 diffusion report says global generative AI use rose by about one percentage point, while the gap between the Global North and South widened.
What happened
Microsoft published its Q2 2026 Global AI Diffusion Report. The company reports that generative AI use reached 18.8% of the world’s working-age population in June, about one percentage point higher than in the first quarter. Microsoft also reports a widening regional divide: 28.8% usage in the Global North compared with 16.2% in the Global South.
Why it matters for AI
Adoption is still expanding, but national and regional averages hide large differences in access, skills, infrastructure and useful local applications. A growing global percentage therefore does not mean that smaller organisations or underserved regions are benefiting at the same rate.
AIRunsThis View
The useful signal is uneven diffusion, not a race for the highest headline number. AI services should be designed around a concrete local workflow, available data and user capability, then measured on completed outcomes. Broad adoption statistics cannot substitute for evidence that a specific service creates value in the Netherlands or Zeeland.
What this could mean for us
Relevant to AIRunsThis opportunity research: compare adoption signals with actual Dutch demand, distribution access and willingness to pay before promoting a new service or pilot.
Source and method
This item is based on a primary source. AIRunsThis separates the source’s factual announcement from its own interpretation. Vendor performance claims have not been independently reproduced unless stated.