SMEs adopt artificial intelligence to automate business operations

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly adopting artificial intelligence to automate administrative and operational tasks. In Colombia, an initiative led by technology integrator Controles Empresariales aims to impact 2,000 organizations by using documentary AI to process contracts, sales, and accounting balances. This move addresses documentation bottlenecks in a sector that represents 99.5% of formal businesses and 79% of total employment in the country. Data from the Bogotá Chamber of Commerce indicates that interest in AI implementation rose to 39.9% in 2025.

In Spain, Vodafone has deployed AI agents to over 100,000 SME clients. These agents are designed to automate repetitive processes such as call handling, appointment scheduling, and incident resolution. The goal is to provide smaller businesses with technological capabilities previously reserved for large corporations through scalable, pay-per-use models that minimize initial investment requirements.