Artificial intelligence adoption trends and national strategies

Global artificial intelligence adoption reached 18.8% of the working-age population in the second quarter, according to Microsoft. While usage is increasing across most economies, a gap remains between the Global North (28.8%) and the Global South (16.2%).

In Spain, the government has introduced the IA360 Plan, a national strategy aimed at establishing the country as an AI power. A central component is the development of an AI gigafactory in Móra la Nova, a project seeking approximately 5 billion euros in European Commission funding. However, domestic business adoption faces challenges; while 21.1% of Spanish companies with ten or more employees used AI in early 2025, 81% of organizations globally report that AI has not yet yielded significant economic impact due to organizational bottlenecks.

In Mexico, AI is driving growth for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). A report by Google and Advertiser Perceptions indicates that 82% of Mexican SMEs have seen positive impacts on sales and revenue through AI. Concurrently, Walmart has launched Sparky, a generative AI shopping assistant in Mexico designed to help customers resolve complex shopping needs through natural conversation rather than traditional product searches.