The use of AI by Norwegian businesses increases in step with the growing availability of AI-based tools, according to the report. It was prepared by Samfunnsøkonomisk Analyse (SØA, a Norwegian consultancy firm specialising in economic and policy assessments) on behalf of NHO members Abelia, NHO Elektro, Fornybar Norge and the Federation of Norwegian Industries.
The report “Bruk av kunstig intelligens i norsk næringsliv” (The Use of AI in Norwegian Businesses) was presented and discussed during the conference “Fra Buzzord til bunnlinje” (From Buzzword to Bottom Line).
Read this article in Norwegian on Arbeidsliv i Norden
SØA carried out a similar survey on the use of AI in businesses in 2003, with a particular focus on the potential for productivity and value creation.
The new report shows that much has happened in the intervening two years:
In 2025, 55 per cent of Norwegian companies say they use AI, compared to 24 per cent in 2023. Around 40 per cent of companies told the survey that they do not use AI.
When asked what stops them from using AI, the main issues are a lack of understanding of what AI can do to help develop the business, uncertainty about the benefits linked to AI and a lack of skills to understand, test or use AI.
New Fafo report: Authors and musicians are sceptical of AI
How is AI shaping the daily lives of Norwegian musicians and authors? This is being explored in the report “Kunst, kultur og KI” (Art, Culture and AI) from the Norwegian research foundation Fafo.
The survey was carried out by Fafo researchers Sigurd M. N. Oppegaard and Johanne Stenseth Huseby. They interviewed Norwegian authors and musicians about their perspectives, experiences and views linked to the use of AI in the arts and culture sector.
The report was presented during a Fafo breakfast in January.
Researcher Johanne Stenseth Huseby told the seminar that authors and musicians rarely use AI in their creative work.
There are several reasons for this:
AI-generated text, language, stories and sounds are of too low quality.
AI models are trained on other artists’ copyrighted work.
AI negatively impacts wages and working conditions.
AI is, however, used for tasks that support the creative process, and to process music.
Authors and musicians express concern about what AI can lead to.
Copyright is a central theme in the report, both in terms of the challenges AI brings to the industry and how such challenges can be addressed through clearer frameworks and regulation.
Copyright issues and regulation also received a great deal of attention during the discussion at the breakfast meeting. After all, how can we regulate – and possibly compensate – in a world shaped by AI?
Flu Hartberg is an illustrator. He is also the head of KIKI Norge. KIKI stands for “Artistic Initiative for Regulation of Artificial Intelligence” (Kunstnerisk initiativ for regulering av kunstig intelligens).
The initiative was established just before 1 May last year, and members marched in the May Day Parade under its own banner, calling for AI regulation.
KIKI calls itself an action group made up of independent artists, authors, musicians, game developers, translators and other actors within the creative industries.
KIKI says it is a guard dog for AI use in culture and public life.
“At KIKI, we are concerned about what we see as the uncritical use of AI. Every day, we witness culture being filled with and replaced by AI material. We have to do something about this. We want to see regulation of AI where it can help protect culture and society,” said Hartberg.
Bjørn Vatne is worried too. He is the leader of the Norwegian Authors’ Union.
“We need regulation here. There’s no need to wait. In 10 years from now, we must not be regretting that we didn’t take action in 2026,” he said.
There are differences between sectors when it comes to the use of AI. The ICT, finance, insurance and consultancy sectors are the keenest users of the technology.
42 per cent of businesses in ICT and finance also say they are developing new AI products or services.
For most companies, AI is primarily used to improve operations and internal work processes. Only four per cent say that AI is crucial to their business operations or business model.
AI is mostly used to improve operations
Frontrunners
One in five businesses says AI is used to develop completely new products or services – the so-called AI frontrunners.
These are companies that have integrated AI broadly in their core processes and use the technology strategically. They stand out with bigger productivity gains and increased revenues compared with companies that only test AI sporadically.
Positive use of AI
Most respondents in the survey say that AI has had a positive impact on the company’s productivity. Many also say that costs have come down and revenues have increased. So far, AI seems to have had little impact on staffing.
AI status in Nordic companies
As Nordic companies increasingly move from seeing AI as an efficiency tool to a strategic driver of innovation, a new Nordic report shows an increasing gap between AI leaders and those who lag behind.
The fourth edition of “The Nordic State of AI” was published by AMD Silo AI and AI Finland in March last year. It surveys more than 120 companies and 17 public organisations in the Nordic countries to assess the current status of AI implementation, investments and challenges.
60 per cent of the surveyed companies said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their AI results.
The companies that report the highest satisfaction with their AI outcomes are characterised by the fact that they:
have established frameworks for assessing AI success
use AI as a central element of their strategy
focus on using AI to strengthen competitive advantage and create new revenue streams
invest more in talent, data quality and data capacity
are more likely to participate in ecosystem collaborations
The report highlights the importance of cross-border collaboration. As more than 60 per cent of the surveyed companies are part of some kind of ecosystem cooperation, the report’s authors believe this cooperation can help the Nordic region compete more efficiently in the global AI race.
“The Nordic region needs to attract talent from outside of the region. To do this, companies must have ambitious AI strategies and offer rewarding and challenging projects for the talent to engage with,” the report concludes.
The report’s predictions show that increased use of AI could make it possible to carry out the tasks society must complete, using fewer working hours.
A difference between big and small
Hanne Jordell at SØA believes it will be a while before all Norwegian companies use AI and can demonstrate its effect. She also points out that there are differences between big, medium and small businesses.
While large companies have the resources to keep up in the AI race, small and medium-sized businesses lack both the time and resources.
This is something Rebekka Borsch is also focused on. She is the director of competence and innovation at NHO and led the conference’s conversation on AI and labour.
She pointed out that despite an increase in the use of AI, there are major gaps in AI competence in both the public and private sectors. Because of labour shortages, existing employees must be retrained.
“Businesses have to invest in their own staff and increase AI competence internally,” Borsch urged.
She also underlined that small and medium-sized companies do not have the resources on their own to strengthen their AI competence.
“How do we make sure those who do not have the muscle to join the skills race are not left behind?” she asked.
The Nordics top Europe in use of generative AI tools.
In 2025, 32.7 per cent of people aged 16 to 74 in the EU had used generative AI tools in the past three months – at home, at work or in education. Nordic citizens use AI tools the most, according to figures from Eurostat.
These are the percentages of people using generative AI tools in the Nordics:
Norway: 56.3 per cent
Denmark: 48.4 per cent
Finland: 46.3 per cent
Sweden: 42.0 per cent
Norway is in first place in Europe, while Denmark is number two, followed by Finland at number three. All the Nordic countries are well above the EU average, which shows how generative AI has become a common everyday tool, not only in offices or at tech companies.
The Swedish educational sector stands out. Despite a lower total ranking, Sweden is number one in Europe when it comes to using generative AI in formal education. Around 21 per cent use AI tools for learning.
Frode Jacobsen is the leader of Oslo Labour Party and a Norwegian MP. He reminded the conference that the labour market would still need people with core skills, but that knowledge of AI is becoming increasingly important.
He too stressed that individual businesses must work to increase AI skills among employees.
“AI is important for improving Norwegian competitiveness,” he pointed out.
