AI spending gap widens as top firms invest $7,450 per employee monthly

Businesses allocate budgets to artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and provide access to workers, while usage restrictions and the widespread adoption of generative AI in the business world create a new source of inequality, as the trend shifted from whether a company uses AI to how much money and time they spend on the technology. The gap in AI usage among companies became more pronounced, according to the US-based corporate spending platform Ramp AI Index.

Spending gap

Companies in the top 1% of AI expenditures spend around $7,450 per employee every month, while companies in the top 10% spend $611, and the median company's monthly AI spending per worker is $11.38. This trend showed that access to AI transformed from a standard tool into a competitive factor highly varying depending on financial funds, technology strategy, and risk appetite.

SME adoption

According to the OECD's November 2025 report, 31% of SMEs use generative AI, while non-users cited the technology was unsuitable for their use cases, along with copyright, legal, and regulatory issues. Only 28.6% of SMEs using generative AI prepared usage guidelines for workers, meaning AI use often occurs via individual initiative rather than comprehensive policies.

Workforce challenges

McKinsey's January 2025 report showed workers expect more support and training during the AI transition. Workers often adopt generative AI tools faster than managers expect, creating a need for usage policies, skill-development programs, and risk management mechanisms. Experts say inequality from the AI transition can emerge both among companies and workers, as those with access to enterprise subscriptions gain greater benefits.