Risk & Governance
What percentage of companies have a formal AI policy?
Short Answer
Only 45% of companies have a formal AI policy as of 2025 — meaning 55% still lack one, though that's improved from 72% without policies in 2024 (Muck Rack, 2025).
Key Facts
- 55% — of companies still lack a formal AI policy — though improving from 72% in 2024 (Muck Rack (via Exploding Topics), 2025).
- 76.3% — of publishers have ethical concerns about AI usage in content creation (Substack AI Report (via Exploding Topics), 2025).
- 40% — of companies don't offer AI training to their employees — despite widespread adoption (Exploding Topics, 2025).
of companies still lack a formal AI policy — though improving from 72% in 2024
Despite rapid adoption, most organisations haven't established governance frameworks for AI use in marketing.
Why does the AI policy gap matter?
Without policies, employees default to BYOAI. 29% of employees pay for their own AI tools, and 50.2% use personal AI accounts for work tasks — feeding confidential data into tools with no DPA, no audit trail, and no retention controls. 48.8% of workers cite privacy/security as their top AI concern.
Which industries are furthest behind on AI policy?
Content-heavy industries show the widest gap: 76.3% of publishers have ethical concerns about AI usage, and 39% of marketers say they don't know how to use generative AI safely. Financial services and healthcare lead on policy adoption thanks to existing regulatory frameworks.
What should a minimum AI policy cover?
Approved tools, prohibited data (PII, confidential IP, regulated data), review requirements for customer-facing output, transparency disclosure to clients, incident reporting, and training requirements. Every major AI-governance framework (NIST AI RMF, ISO 42001, EU AI Act guidance) converges on roughly the same core elements.
Supporting Data
of publishers have ethical concerns about AI usage in content creation
Substack AI Report (via Exploding Topics), 2025
of companies don't offer AI training to their employees — despite widespread adoption
Exploding Topics, 2025
of workers receive little or no AI training from their employer
Exploding Topics, 2025
Recommended Citation
AI Statistics Center, citing Muck Rack (via Exploding Topics) (2025). https://aistatisticscenter.com/answers/what-percentage-of-companies-have-ai-policy
Free to quote with attribution. Linking back to the answer page helps readers verify the data and keeps this resource free.