Consumer AI spending tripled to $40B while users grew just 1.8B to 2B, Menlo finds
AdBoth2756 · reddit · 2026-09-30
Menlo Ventures' 2026 State of Consumer AI report (5,067 US adults surveyed with Morning Consult) shows global consumer AI spending jumping from $12B to $40B in a year, while the user base grew only from 1.8B to 2B — growth is coming from existing users paying more, not new adopters.
Key data points:
- In the US, 55% of AI users pay for something, but the 14% spending $100+/month drive 60% of revenue.
- The average person now uses 3 AI assistants at once (up from 2.2); Claude's user share rose from 7% to 20%.
- 32% of users have let AI act without final approval, and 24% use agents regularly.
The takeaway: this is deepening power-user engagement rather than mass adoption — great for revenue, but the market leans heavily on a small group of heavy spenders.
Related event: Consumer AI Spending Triples to $40B, Driven by Power Users(3 posts)→
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