Statistics Canada: 25.2% of businesses plan to use AI

Responses were collected from July 2 to August 6, 2026. The twelve-month horizon therefore depends on when each business answered. It does not begin uniformly on the report’s release date and does not refer exclusively to projects starting in 2027.

For a smaller company, the release provides context. It does not establish which investment fits its operations. Before choosing technology, identify a frequent task with understood inputs, exceptions and ownership. The quality of available data may change the appropriate scope of the first project.

For example, CRM and ERP automation could focus on preparing a record from an incoming request. In this fictional scenario, a responsible employee retains approval of sensitive fields. The pilot should demonstrate what happens with incomplete requests and how staff correct an inaccurate proposal.

A RAG knowledge base addresses a different need: retrieving authorized passages from internal documents. Its suitability depends on the sources, access permissions and update process. A general intention to use AI cannot determine which of these projects the organization should pursue first or establish whether either would be useful.

Document the current process, then decide what to observe: handling time, required corrections, errors and cases referred to a person. Set a trial period and name the person responsible for reviewing it. Any eventual productivity claim needs to come from observations in that pilot; the national figure cannot establish local benefits.

When planning a custom web application incorporating AI, begin with a narrow business case, controlled information and an explicit rule for stopping or continuing. That work helps distinguish a planned initiative from an operational use that the business has actually put into service and can support.