While known for their innovation, small businesses often struggle to keep pace with rapid technological change, which can hinder their growth and competitiveness. The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) recently released a new survey providing data-driven insights into how small businesses are integrating new technology and AI into their business operations.
More than 500 small business owners across various industries participated in the Small Business and Technology Survey. The report examined what types of technologies these businesses are adopting and the pace at which they’re implementing them. The focus was specifically on small employers—businesses with at least one employee.
Artificial intelligence
The survey revealed a notable correlation between business size and the adoption of AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Copilot, Grammarly and Canva, into their daily operations. Larger firms are more likely to integrate AI into their daily operations.
Currently, 24% of small employers use AI, while 76% do not. Adoption rates vary significantly by size: 21% of small employers with fewer than 10 employees use AI compared to 48% of those with more than 50 employees.
Looking ahead, 63% of respondents believe that AI will play a role in their industry within the next five years. Twelve percent expect it will be extremely important, 21% say it will be moderately important and 30% believe it will be mildly important. Only 15% said it won’t be important at all, while 23% were unsure.
In terms of case uses, 29% of small employers plan to utilize AI technology for communication purposes such as emails, memos and document creation. Another 27% will use it for marketing and advertising. Fourteen percent plan to use it for business or predictive analysis, while 9% expect to use it for customer service. Notably, nearly all small employers (98%) reported that AI has not affected the size of their workforce.
Use of new or improved technologies
Over the past two years, 57% of small businesses have incorporated new or significantly improved technology into their operations. Like AI adoption, this also scales with business size. Fifty-one percent of small employers with fewer than 10 employees reported upgrading tech compared to 75% of businesses with more than 50 employees.
When asked about the impact of these upgrades, 65% said the technology allowed them to stay competitive, 14% said it helped them catch up and 11% felt it gave them an edge over the competition.
Internet presence
Eighty-two percent of the small employers surveyed reported having a website. Among them, 75% of businesses with less than 10 employees had a site, compared to 90% of businesses with 10–24 employees. The number rose to 96% for business with 25–49 and 97% for those with 50 or more.
However, only 19% of small business with websites accept payments online, while the majority (81%) do not.
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