A survey of 100 companies in the Global 2000 on AI use: 78% of CIOs use OpenAI models in production, above Anthropic's 44%, but Anthropic's gains are impressive
Results from our third annual CIO Survey — The enterprise AI battleground is heating up, and we've got some fresh data on the state of play and who's winning.
Context & Ripple Effects
This survey puts a production-deployment measure behind a corporate AI contest in which Anthropic had already been described as deriving most of its revenue from enterprise customers and holding a reported lead in enterprise API share. That makes the gap between installed production use and momentum especially consequential.
The subsequent coverage suggests the contest is shifting from incumbent deployments to new purchasing decisions, with Anthropic reportedly taking a larger share of first-time AI-tool spending. Anthropic's lead in first-time AI-tool spend is a useful counterpoint to OpenAI's broader production footprint.
First-order effects
- OpenAI has the wider reported production footprint among surveyed Global 2000 CIOs, reinforcing its position in accounts that have already moved models into live workflows.
- Anthropic's lower reported penetration, alongside its stated gains, makes it the principal challenger for enterprise evaluations and expansions rather than a marginal alternative.
Second-order effects
- Enterprise buyers are likely to preserve optionality across leading model providers: OpenAI’s installed base raises switching costs, while Anthropic’s momentum strengthens its case in new procurements and renewals.
- The split increases the value of disciplined model selection around workload fit and deployment requirements, rather than treating enterprise AI as a single-vendor purchase.
Third-order effects
- If new-buying momentum continues while OpenAI retains deployed accounts, enterprise AI may develop into a durable two-provider market defined by installed-base advantages versus challenger-led expansion.
- The concentration is consistent with later revenue coverage in which OpenAI and Anthropic captured most revenue among leading AI startups, raising the stakes for procurement leverage and provider diversification. Revenue concentration among leading AI startups reinforces that structural dynamic.
The trend: Enterprise AI is moving from early production adoption toward a two-provider contest in which incumbency and new-customer acquisition can diverge.