Artificial Intelligence is gaining rapid traction across Portugal, with over 600,000 companies now using the technology—an average of 12 new adopters per hour in 2024. According to Amazon Web Services (AWS), this represents 41% of all Portuguese businesses, up from 35% in 2023, reflecting an AI adoption growth rate of 17%.
While startups are leading the charge, integrating AI into their core strategies and products, large companies and SMEs remain cautious, often limiting use to efficiency gains and process automation. In contrast, 62% of startups have adopted AI, with 35% developing AI-based offerings and 55% embedding AI into their strategy.
Investment is also rising. Portuguese companies increased their AI spending by 24% in 2024, surpassing the European average of 22%. AWS estimates that AI will account for 16% of IT budgets in Portugal by 2028.
The benefits are clear: companies report higher productivity, automation of routine tasks, and notably, revenue growth. However, adoption still faces hurdles, including digital skills shortages, cost perceptions, and regulatory uncertainty.
To address these challenges, AWS supports Portugal’s Digital Strategy for 2025, which emphasizes:
- Continued support for startups, especially in AI
- Accelerated digital transformation across all sectors
- Greater assistance for SMEs and large enterprises to adopt AI strategically
With cloud-based AI projected to contribute over $647 million to Portugal’s GDP in 2023 alone—and $434 billion across Europe by 2030—Portugal is well-positioned to become a leader in the AI economy if it continues to scale adoption intelligently.
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