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# Software engineering in tech and knowledge management in professional services led AI use in 2025, at 58%
- URL: https://aiadoption.org/data/ai-use-by-industry-and-function/
- Published: 2026-10-19T16:14:20.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-21T06:01:42.000Z
- Description: 58% of McKinsey survey respondents in technology said their organisation used AI in software engineering in 2025, matched only by knowledge management in business, legal and professional services.
- Author: Manu
- Tags: Data, AI Adoption, #chart, #ai-index-2026, #hub-adoption

58%

#1 of 11

of respondents in technology said their organisation used AI in software engineering in 2025, the joint highest share in the chart

Technology sector, 2025

Software engineering58%

IT56%

Marketing and sales49%

## What the chart shows

In McKinsey’s 2025 State of AI survey, 58% of respondents in the technology sector said their organisation used AI in software engineering, and 58% in business, legal and professional services said so for knowledge management, the two highest shares. Technology IT (56%) and marketing and sales in consumer goods and retail (51%) followed.

Use was low in some functions outside the industries where they are central. Financial services reported 43% use in risk, legal and compliance, against 7% to 18% in the other industries, and manufacturing use ranged from 0% in financial services to 26% in advanced industries.

## Key numbers

| Measure                                                         | Value |
| --------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- |
| Technology, software engineering                                | 58%   |
| Business, legal and professional services, knowledge management | 58%   |
| Technology, IT                                                  | 56%   |
| Consumer goods and retail, marketing and sales                  | 51%   |
| Financial services, risk, legal and compliance                  | 43%   |
| Financial services, manufacturing                               | 0%    |

## How to read it

- Respondents to McKinsey’s State of AI survey (2025), by industry; a share of respondents is not a share of companies.
- Advanced industries include advanced electronics, aerospace and defence, automotive and assembly, and semiconductors. Energy and materials include agriculture, chemicals, power and gas, mining, oil and gas, and paper and packaging.
- Rows are sorted by the technology sector’s values.

**Source:** [McKinsey & Company Survey](https://aiadoption.org/sources/#mckinsey-state-of-ai), 2025, via the AI Index Report 2026 (Stanford HAI), figure 4.3.3: *AI use by industry and function, 2025*. Chart and text by AI Adoption.  
Numbers checked against the published data on 20 October 2026.  
[Download the data (CSV)](https://charts.aiadoption.org/ai-index/csv/ai-use-by-industry-and-function.csv?ref=aiadoption.org) · [Cite this chart](#source)