No official statistics rank AI products by name, but Statistics Canada does record which types of AI tools businesses use. Among Canadian businesses that used AI in the 12 months before spring 2026, data analytics was named most often (36.6 percent). Text analytics ranked second at 34.5 percent, and chatbot-style tools followed at 28.2 percent. The mix changes sharply by industry, so a tool that leads in one sector may be rare in another.
Key takeaways
- Statistics Canada's survey counts application types, such as data analytics and chatbots, not brand names, so a "top tools" ranking has no official basis.
- Among AI-using businesses in spring 2026, large language models were reported by 24.8 percent, up from 19.1 percent a year earlier.
- Information and cultural businesses reported chatbots most often (50.9 percent), while finance and insurance businesses reported text analytics and large language models equally (38.8 percent each).
- Businesses with 100 or more employees most often used chatbots (50.5 percent), and businesses with one to four employees most often used data analytics (32.5 percent).
- Tool type is a better starting point for comparison than a product list, because the type fixes what data goes in and what kind of error to expect.
What the survey measured
The figures come from the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions, with responses gathered between April 1 and May 6, 2026. Statistics Canada invited 21,105 businesses with employees and received 9,251 responses, and it weighted them to represent all such businesses. Respondents were asked about AI use in producing goods or delivering services over the previous 12 months. The survey does not use the term generative AI, and the closest category is large language models. In its June 11, 2026 analysis, Statistics Canada found that 19.2 percent of businesses used AI under this definition, and the shares below are percentages of those AI-using businesses.
Application types, in plain terms
The categories overlap, since one product can do several things, and a business can report more than one. The plain-language descriptions are general definitions, not Statistics Canada wording.
| Application type | What it does | Share of AI users, 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data analytics using AI | Finds patterns or makes forecasts from numeric records | 36.6 percent | 26.4 percent |
| Text analytics | Classifies or extracts information from written documents | 34.5 percent | 35.7 percent |
| Virtual agents or chatbots | Answers questions in conversation, often for customers | 28.2 percent | 24.8 percent |
| Natural language processing | Handles human language, such as translation or intent detection | 27.0 percent | 23.1 percent |
| Large language models | Generates or transforms text from prompts | 24.8 percent | 19.1 percent |
| Speech or voice recognition | Converts spoken audio to text or commands | 20.6 percent | 20.0 percent |
| Marketing automation | Targets or schedules messages to customers | 19.8 percent | 23.1 percent |
| Machine learning | Learns a prediction rule from labeled examples | 18.2 percent | 18.6 percent |
| Recommendation systems | Suggests items based on past behavior | 17.9 percent | 14.0 percent |
| Image or pattern recognition | Identifies objects or shapes in images | 14.0 percent | 11.4 percent |
| Robotic process automation | Repeats rule-based computer tasks | 5.0 percent | 3.8 percent |
Not every row is a rise. Text analytics and marketing automation slipped slightly, while AI-based decision-making systems jumped from 5.7 to 13.7 percent. Statistics Canada does not explain each shift, so changes between survey years should be read as descriptive.
The same technology looks different by sector
Statistics Canada singles out three industries. In information and cultural industries, the leading applications were virtual agents or chatbots (50.9 percent) and data analytics (48.3 percent). In finance and insurance, text analytics and large language models tied at 38.8 percent. In professional, scientific, and technical services, data analytics (48.6 percent) and text analytics (44.2 percent) led. A bank reading contracts and a media company answering audience questions are using different tools under the same label.
The gap between sectors is also visible in overall adoption. Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (4.5 percent), wholesale trade (7.9 percent), and construction (9.2 percent) had the lowest rates among the sectors the agency highlights.
Size and barriers
Businesses with 100 or more employees reported AI use at a rate of 27.8 percent, with chatbots at 50.5 percent and data analytics at 40.4 percent in front. Among businesses with one to four employees, 19.9 percent used AI, with data analytics (32.5 percent) and text analytics (29.4 percent) leading. Of the AI users, 44.4 percent changed training or staffing because of AI. The top barrier was worry about cybersecurity or privacy, cited by 13.4 percent, with cost next at 10.6 percent.
Statistics Canada says its TechStat program, funded in Budget 2025, will publish new business statistics on AI use, benefits, and challenges starting in 2027. Until then, this survey is the main national source on application types.
Using the types to read any "top tools" list
- Which row of the table does the tool belong to? A text tool and an image tool fail in different ways.
- What data does it need, and does that data include customer or employee records?
- Is the claimed benefit measured against a comparison group, or only described by the seller?
- Who reviews the output before it affects a customer or a decision?
- Does the business size and sector in the example match the reader's own?
FAQ
Which AI tools are used most in Canada?
By type, data analytics, text analytics, and chatbots led in spring 2026. The survey does not name products, so it cannot say which brands are used most.
Is a chatbot the same as a large language model?
No. A chatbot is an interface, and it can be built from fixed scripts or from a language model. The survey lists them separately, and a business may report both.
Why do some industries use AI so little?
Statistics Canada reports that 40.0 percent of all businesses said AI was not relevant to them. The answer varies with size: 41.4 percent of businesses with one to four employees gave it, against 21.3 percent of those with 100 or more.
Do these numbers cover the United States?
No. They describe Canadian businesses with employees. The U.S. Census Bureau runs its own business survey with different questions, so the two should not be compared figure by figure.
Related reading
- What Deloitte AI Institute reports say about industries
- Artificial intelligence programs and rules in New York
- AI tools and workplace productivity
- AI tools in Canada
More in AI Basics.
Last verified: October 2026
Sources
- Analysis on artificial intelligence use by businesses in Canada, second quarter of 2026, Statistics Canada, Catalog 11-621-M, June 11, 2026
- Canadian Survey on Business Conditions, second quarter of 2026, Statistics Canada, data table 33-10-1167-01