Kenya leads AI use in East Africa, but still below global average – Microsoft

Findings from the report show a widening divide in AI use, where adoption in the Global North was found to have grown twice as fast as the Global South, which is largely made up of developing countries and emerging economies. 

On tracking global use of generative AI products, Microsoft’s AI Economy Institute established that AI diffusion rose by 1.2% in the second half of 2026. It found that as of the end of 2025, one in six people worldwide were using generative AI tools. 

While a number of nations in the Southern (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana) and Northern (Libya, Algeria, Egypt) parts of the continent recorded a higher AI adoption, those in the West and East recorded below-average AI use share. 

In the first half of 2025, Kenya recorded a 7.8% AI use, which increased to 8.1% in the second half of 2025. Here, the average in global AI diffusion was 16.30%. 

The country took a regional lead as it recorded a higher AI diffusion than other countries in the East African Community (EAC).

In the second half of 2025, the Democratic Republic of the Congo recorded 7.8% in global AI use, Somalia (6.8%), Burundi (6.8%), Rwanda (6.3), South Sudan (6.8%), Uganda (6.8%), and Tanzania (6.8%). 

Globally, the United Arab Emirates led in AI use (64.0%) as Singapore followed with 60.9% and Norway at 46.4%. 

“Nations that have invested early and consistently in digital infrastructure continue to lead,” the AI Economy Institute says in its report. 

According to Microsoft, Open-Source AI tools enjoy prominence in developing countries and emerging economies. There is a high usage of the Chinese-owned chatbot DeepSeek in emerging economies due to its entirely free‑to‑use model on the web and mobile.

The absence of subscription fees or payment requirements by DeepSeek was found to have lowered the barrier for millions of users, especially in price‑sensitive regions.

“This combination of openness and affordability allowed DeepSeek to gain traction in markets underserved by Western AI platforms,” reads the report. 

The AI Economy Institute further credits dedicated policy attention, governance frameworks, and regulatory pragmatism for the UAE’s continued leadership in AI adoption.