How EU manufacturers use AI
Among EU manufacturers that use AI, the most common applications are not on the factory floor: in 2024 about 27.1% used AI for marketing and sales, narrowly ahead of 26.2% using it for production processes. Manufacturers mostly buy AI ready-made — around 6% used off-the-shelf commercial software, while fewer than 2% developed AI in-house.
What it means
Even in manufacturing, AI is applied to marketing and sales as often as to production itself — and most firms buy it ready-made rather than build it. For an operator the practical lesson is that the fastest, lowest-risk entry point to industrial AI is usually a commercial off-the-shelf tool applied to a clear business problem, not a bespoke in-house data-science project.
Context
Eurostat's isoc_eb_ain2 dataset breaks AI use down by NACE activity, including manufacturing, for the 2024 reference year. Shares describe what AI-using manufacturers apply the technology to and how they source it; production processes and marketing/sales lead, with logistics, administration and other functions behind. Because the base is firms that already use AI, these percentages describe usage patterns, not overall adoption across all manufacturers.
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Related topics
Generative AI in Manufacturing: Practical Examples · AI Agents for Industrial Maintenance: What They Are and Where They Help · Machine Learning (Industrial) · Generative AI
Relevant to: Food Processing · Chemicals · Steel & Metals