Research & Analysis
What “AI adoption” surveys actually measure
Four surveys, four definitions, and why their headline numbers disagree.
Definitions do the work
Surveys that ask whether a firm “uses AI” often mix a chatbot trial with a rewritten production process. When the definition changes, the headline rate moves even if behaviour does not.
ContextLens treats these instruments as evidence about measurement as much as evidence about adoption. AI is a research subject here, not a product claim.