French mid-sized firms adopt AI but see few gains, survey shows

June 23 (Reuters) - Generative AI use is spreading quickly among French mid-sized companies, but most have yet to report clear productivity benefits, according to a survey by state-backed investment bank Bpifrance.

Bpifrance said in its annual barometer of Entreprises de Taille Intermédiaire, or ETIs, that 77% of 534 company heads surveyed said their firms use generative artificial intelligence, while only 17% of those using it reported time savings from the technology.

The findings suggest adoption is moving faster than measurable returns, as many companies still struggle to turn new tools into practical efficiency gains.

• Firms using generative AI more intensively were more likely to report benefits, with 23% of regular users seeing productivity gains compared with 12% of occasional users

• Some 78% of firms said they expected generative AI to have a positive impact on productivity over time, up 11 points from a year earlier

• Use of generative AI was more common among services firms and industrial or construction companies than in commerce, transport and tourism

• Demand remained the main brake on growth, with 55% of firms saying current or expected demand weakness was weighing on activity

• The 2026 cash-position outlook balance fell 2 points to -12, with industrial and construction firms particularly downbeat

• The revenue outlook balance rose 8 points to +18, but remained well below its 2011-2025 average of +29

(Reporting by Leo Marchandon in Gdansk; Editing by Matt Scuffham)