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Enterprise Use of Artificial Intelligence in Ireland: CSO Figures 2023 to 2025
The CSO's table ICA237 gives 20.2% of "All Enterprises" as "Enterprises using Artificial Intelligence" in 2025, up from 15.2% in 2024 and 8.1% in 2023. The results cover enterprises with ten or more persons engaged in manufacturing, construction and selected services, not every business in Ireland. By size class in 2025 the table gives 17.2% for "Small (10 to 49)", 28.6% for "Medium (50 to 249)" and 57.7% for "Large (250 or more)". The percentage-point changes on this page are ours. None of the figures is for cafés.
What share of enterprises with ten or more persons engaged in manufacturing, construction and selected services used AI in 2025?
The CSO's table ICA237 gives 20.2% for "All Enterprises" in 2025. The release says: "In 2025, 20.2% of all enterprises indicated that they used AI technologies in some capacity." Its key findings say: "In 2025, more than 20% of enterprises in Ireland used Artificial Intelligence (AI), compared with over 15% in 2024."
The Background Notes set the coverage: "The results cover enterprises with ten or more persons engaged in the manufacturing, construction and selected services sectors." So the 20.2% for 2025 is for that group. It is not a figure for businesses in general.
How does the use of AI differ by enterprise size?
The share of enterprises using AI rises with size in the table. In 2025 the table gives 17.2% for "Small (10 to 49)", 28.6% for "Medium (50 to 249)" and 57.7% for "Large (250 or more)". For 2025 the release says: "Almost six in ten (57.7%) large enterprises used AI technology, compared with 28.6% of medium and 17.2% of small sized enterprises."
"Small (10 to 49)" is the smallest class in the table.
How has the use of AI by enterprises changed since 2023?
The share of enterprises using AI rose in every size class in each year of the table. For "All Enterprises" the table gives 8.1% in 2023, 15.2% in 2024 and 20.2% in 2025, a rise of 12.1 percentage points from 2023 to 2025 (ours). For "Small (10 to 49)" it gives 5.4% in 2023, 12.0% in 2024 and 17.2% in 2025, a rise of 11.8 percentage points from 2023 to 2025 (ours).
For "Medium (50 to 249)" the table gives 17.8% in 2023, 25.1% in 2024 and 28.6% in 2025. For "Large (250 or more)" it gives 36.5% in 2023, 51.2% in 2024 and 57.7% in 2025. We give no reason for the changes, because the tables give none. All twelve figures are in the first table below.
Which AI technologies and purposes did the CSO tables count?
Table ICA237 counts seven technologies and table ICA238 counts seven purposes, and the second table below gives each for 2025 for "All Enterprises" and "Small (10 to 49)". We use the CSO's labels as they stand and add no definition of our own.
For the technologies, table ICA237 gives for "All Enterprises" 10.8% for "Enterprises using Artificial Intelligence for data mining" in 2025, 9.3% for "Enterprises using Artificial Intelligence for natural language generation" in 2025 and 6.2% for "Enterprises using Artificial Intelligence for automating workflows or assisting in decision making" in 2025. On purposes, the release says: "In 2025, 7.8% of enterprises used AI for business administrative processes, followed by 5.4% for marketing or sales, ICT services, and R&D or innovation activity."
Tables ICA237 and ICA238 give every figure by year (2023 to 2025) and by all four size classes, and they are in the CSV. One cell is empty in the source (physical movement, "Small (10 to 49)", 2023), and the CSV leaves it blank.
Does this tell us about cafés?
Not directly. The tables give no sector breakdown, so there is no figure for cafés or for any one sector, and we do not estimate one. The coverage is enterprises with ten or more persons engaged in manufacturing, construction and selected services. For related reading, see our page on how cafés show up in AI answers.
Where do these numbers come from?
They come from two CSO tables, both updated 6 February 2026: ICA237 "Enterprise use of Artificial Intelligence" and ICA238 "Purpose of Artificial Intelligence Use". We read them on 29 October 2026. They sit under the release "Information Society Statistics - Enterprises 2025" and its Background Notes. The tables give the unit as "%", and the release states the shares as shares of enterprises.
You can download the figures as a CSV. If you cite the figures: Cupán Studio, from CSO tables ICA237 and ICA238, read 29 October 2026. For other tables from the same CSO release, see what enterprise websites in Ireland offer.
| Size class | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Enterprises | 8.1 | 15.2 | 20.2 |
| Small (10 to 49) | 5.4 | 12.0 | 17.2 |
| Medium (50 to 249) | 17.8 | 25.1 | 28.6 |
| Large (250 or more) | 36.5 | 51.2 | 57.7 |
| Technology or purpose | All Enterprises | Small (10 to 49) |
|---|---|---|
| Technologies (ICA237) | ||
| data mining | 10.8 | 9.0 |
| natural language generation | 9.3 | 7.9 |
| automating workflows or assisting in decision making | 6.2 | 4.3 |
| speech recognition | 6.0 | 4.4 |
| machine learning | 6.0 | 4.2 |
| image recognition or processing | 2.8 | 2.0 |
| enabling physical movement of machines via autonomous decisions | 0.8 | 0.3 |
| Purposes (ICA238) | ||
| business administrative processes | 7.8 | 6.3 |
| marketing or sales | 5.4 | 4.5 |
| ICT services | 5.4 | 3.2 |
| R&D or innovation activity | 5.4 | 4.3 |
| accounting, controlling, or financial management | 4.7 | 3.7 |
| production processes | 3.3 | 2.3 |
| logistics | 1.5 | 0.9 |
Sources
- Central Statistics Office, table ICA237, Enterprise use of Artificial Intelligence, updated 6 February 2026, read 29 October 2026.
- Central Statistics Office, table ICA238, Purpose of Artificial Intelligence Use, updated 6 February 2026, read 29 October 2026.
- Central Statistics Office, Information Society Statistics - Enterprises 2025, including Artificial Intelligence and Background Notes, read 29 October 2026.
Figures from CSO tables ICA237 and ICA238, read 29 October 2026; changes in percentage points are ours. A summary of published statistics, not advice. Cupán Studio builds websites for cafés in Ireland.
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