OpenAI Economic Research finds that agentic tools now account for more than half of output tokens among EU ChatGPT Enterprise customers. Adoption varies significantly by country, with Lithuania at 85% and Slovenia at 22%.
OpenAI Economic Research has released an analysis detailing the adoption of agentic AI tools among businesses in the European Union. The report, published on October 14, 2026, indicates that usage of tools capable of executing tasks independently, rather than just answering questions, has become a dominant form of interaction for enterprise customers in the region.
According to the report, agentic use represents a substantial share of activity among ChatGPT Enterprise customers in the EU. OpenAI states that Codex and ChatGPT Work now account for more than half of output tokens in its EU sample. The analysis defines small or medium businesses as those with 200 or fewer associated users.
The data shows rapid growth in this sector. Since May 2026, weekly active users of Codex and ChatGPT Work among EU small and medium businesses grew more than eightfold. The report notes that this growth occurred across every member state.
Despite the overall growth, the report highlights that adoption is not uniform across the EU. Among ChatGPT Enterprise accounts in the sample, the share of output tokens generated through Codex and ChatGPT Work varied significantly by country. The range extended from 22% in Slovenia to 85% in Lithuania. OpenAI notes that differences across countries also extend to the types of work users bring to the platform.
The analysis further compares EU firms to global benchmarks. Frontier firms are defined as the top 10% of firms by output tokens per active user. In September, frontier firms in the EU generated more than four times as many output tokens per active user as typical EU firms. However, frontier firms outside the EU generated more than twice as many output tokens per active user as their EU counterparts. Additionally, EU-based firms represented only 10% of the frontier firms globally, a figure OpenAI describes as low considering the EU's share of registered companies worldwide.
Sarah Friar, Chief Financial Officer of OpenAI, commented on the findings in the report.
"Europe is now in a new era of AI, with tools that can carry out tasks for people. More than half of the AI use among our EU enterprise and business customers now involves these tools, and the number of small business users has grown 8x across the region. Yet there is still plenty of room for AI use to grow across the EU. Giving people the tools, skills and confidence to use AI well will help build stronger businesses and growing economies, with benefits felt across Europe."
The data suggests that while EU businesses are increasingly integrating AI agents into their workflows, there remains a significant gap in usage intensity compared to global leaders. OpenAI identifies closing this gap as an opportunity to enhance productivity and business strength, emphasizing the need for accessible tools and workforce skills development.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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