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• The Colab Team

87% of NZ Businesses Now Use AI — But Only 12% Have Scaled It

#AI adoption#New Zealand#research#2025

New Zealand businesses have embraced AI at a remarkable pace. According to the AI Forum NZ’s third productivity report released in August 2025, 87% of New Zealand organisations now use some form of AI — nearly doubling from 48% in 2023.

That’s a stunning transformation in just two years.

We’re ahead of the world

Kiwi businesses aren’t just keeping up — they’re leading:

  • 87% of NZ organisations use AI (vs 75% globally)
  • 82% of NZ SMEs are experimenting with or actively using AI tools — well above the global average of 75% and APAC’s 63% (Salesforce SMB Trends Report)
  • Among larger enterprises (200+ employees), adoption reaches 92%

New Zealand’s knowledge workers have one of the highest generative AI adoption rates in the world at 84%.

The results are clear

For businesses that have implemented AI, the returns are compelling:

  • 95% of SMEs using AI report increased revenue
  • 91% report efficiency improvements
  • 77% have reduced operational costs
  • Over a quarter report benefits exceeding $50,000 per year

The most common use cases? Marketing campaign optimisation, automated customer service chatbots, and personalised recommendations.

But there’s a problem

Here’s where it gets interesting — and where the opportunity lies.

Despite high adoption rates, only 12% of organisations have managed to scale AI across their entire business. The rest are stuck:

  • 46% are still in “exploratory” mode, running pilot projects
  • 33% have deployed AI at departmental level only
  • 88% haven’t achieved organisation-wide implementation

This is the gap we see every day working with New Zealand businesses.

What’s holding companies back?

The 2025 State of AI Index from Datacom identifies the key barriers:

  1. Lack of internal capability or skills (32%)
  2. Data quality or integration issues (22%)
  3. Uncertainty over governance or regulation (16%)

There’s also the “shadow AI” problem — 52% of leaders identify unapproved AI tool usage as a concern in their organisations.

The generational divide

Among SMEs, younger business owners are driving adoption:

  • 93% of Gen Z business operators have started using AI
  • 59% of Millennials
  • 28% of Gen X
  • 17% of Baby Boomers

This generational gap represents both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses thinking about succession and capability building.

The $76 billion opportunity

New Zealand’s first AI Strategy, released in July 2025, estimates that AI could contribute $76 billion to the NZ economy by 2038 — over 15% of GDP.

The government has committed $17 million through the Responsible AI Adopt programme specifically to help SMEs understand and implement AI technologies.

What this means for your business

The data tells a clear story:

  1. AI adoption is no longer optional — your competitors are already using it
  2. The gains are real — 95% of adopters report increased revenue
  3. The challenge isn’t starting, it’s scaling — most businesses need help moving beyond pilots
  4. Skills are the bottleneck — not technology, not budget

If you’re in the 87% experimenting with AI but haven’t scaled it across your organisation, you’re not alone. That’s exactly the gap we help businesses bridge.

The Colab helps New Zealand businesses move from AI pilots to production. Get in touch to discuss your AI journey.

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