Anthropic Overtakes OpenAI in Business AI Adoption (2026)

[Alex]: Hey everyone! Welcome back to Nerd Level Tech AI Cast, where we break down the wild world of artificial intelligence so you don’t have to Google half the words we say. I’m Alex—

[Jamie]: —And I’m Jamie. And Alex, I have to admit, this week’s topic made me do a double-take. Did Anthropic really just pass OpenAI in business adoption? Are we living in the upside-down?

[Alex]: I know! It sounds like we’ve entered a parallel universe, but according to Ramp’s latest AI Index, Anthropic—yep, the Claude folks—have edged out OpenAI when it comes to US businesses actually spending money. Specifically, 41% of businesses on Ramp’s platform are paying Anthropic, versus 39.5% for OpenAI.

[Jamie]: Wait, 41 to 39.5? That’s... not exactly a landslide. That’s like winning Mario Kart by a single banana peel.

[Alex]: [laughs] Honestly, it’s about that close. It’s a photo finish. But here’s where it gets interesting—this is the first time Anthropic’s pulled ahead, at least by this particular measure. Ramp’s data is all about actual spend, not just how many people say they use it.

[Jamie]: Okay, so hold up. What exactly is this Ramp AI Index? Is it like a poll, or are they tracking what companies actually do?

[Alex]: Great question. Ramp isn’t just asking “do you use AI?” They’re looking at real, anonymized payment data—think corporate cards and invoices—from over 70,000 companies. If a business pays for Claude or ChatGPT, Ramp sees it. So it’s less about what people claim, and more about where the money's actually going.

[Jamie]: So, basically, if you expense a thousand bucks on API credits for Claude, Ramp knows. That’s both impressive... and a little creepy. [laughs]

[Alex]: [chuckles] Well, it’s all anonymized, so don’t worry, Jamie, your secret AI splurges are safe. But it does mean this index is a fast, grounded signal of business AI adoption—especially among mid-sized, tech-forward US companies.

[Jamie]: But you said “by this particular measure.” Is there another scoreboard somewhere? Like, is OpenAI still winning on some other chart?

[Alex]: Yup, and that’s where things get spicy. IDC, the big research firm, did their own survey back in March. According to them, OpenAI is still king, used by 42% of organizations. Anthropic? Only about 19% said they used it extensively, although another 25% were “actively evaluating.”

[Jamie]: So, depending who you ask, either Anthropic is the new AI overlord, or OpenAI is still the champ. Is this like the difference between watching the Super Bowl live, and reading the stats the next morning?

[Alex]: [laughs] Kind of! The difference is all about methodology. Ramp is tracking spend—think “bottoms-up,” where teams swipe the company card for the tools they actually use. IDC’s survey is “top-down”—CIOs and execs saying what’s officially sanctioned across the org. Both are valid, but they measure different slices of reality.

[Jamie]: So in Ramp’s world, it’s all about who’s actually getting paid. In IDC’s world, it’s about who’s on the official company IT Christmas card list.

[Alex]: Perfect analogy! And here’s the twist—even Ramp says their numbers aren’t a full census. Their customer base skews mid-market, techy, and US-based. So it’s a strong signal, but not the whole story.

[Jamie]: Alright, so how did Anthropic go from the underdog to top dog—even if just by a hair? Did OpenAI stumble, or did Anthropic just have a Rocky montage?

[Alex]: More like a Rocky montage, minus the raw eggs. If you look at the past 18 months, Anthropic’s business adoption rate basically quadrupled—from just over 10% at the end of 2024 to 41% now. OpenAI’s numbers have been pretty flat—hovering around 39-41%. So it wasn’t OpenAI collapsing; Anthropic just kept climbing.

[Jamie]: Wow. That’s like showing up at the gym every day while your rival is chilling at the juice bar.

[Alex]: Exactly! And the real story is that Anthropic’s been winning over developer and coding teams, where Claude’s been a big hit. OpenAI’s still huge, but their growth has stalled a bit.

[Jamie]: Can you imagine the group chats at Google and xAI right now? “Hey, guys, we’re at 6% and 3%... but at least we’re not DeepSeek at 0.3!”

[Alex]: [laughs] It’s a tough leaderboard if you’re not named Anthropic or OpenAI right now. But, fun fact: most companies pay for more than one model, so there’s a lot of overlapping spend.

[Jamie]: Wait, didn’t Ramp change their methodology partway through? How much does that mess up the numbers?

[Alex]: Good catch! They did a methodological refresh in June—basically tweaking how they count enterprise spend. The percentages jumped a bit, but the key thing is, in both the old and new methods, Anthropic still edges out OpenAI. So, treat the crossover as confirmed, but don’t get too obsessed with the decimal points.

[Jamie]: So, “Anthropic overtakes OpenAI*”—with a giant asterisk at the bottom. Got it.

[Alex]: Yup, and even Ramp’s lead economist, Ara Kharazian, says not to read too much into it. He actually flagged three risks that could slow Anthropic down.

[Jamie]: Ooh, lay ‘em on me. What are the headwinds for Team Claude?

[Alex]: First, incentive misalignment. Anthropic makes more money when people use pricier models, which could nudge businesses to spend more than they need. Second, reliability—there were some outages and rate limits this spring, though Anthropic’s already signed a SpaceX data-center deal to beef up capacity. Third, cost pressure—updates to models can make each prompt more expensive, and cheaper open-source options are nipping at their heels.

[Jamie]: So, “Congratulations on your lead, but don’t get comfy.” Got it. Also, I love that “SpaceX data-center deal” is now a thing. Elon’s everywhere.

[Alex]: He really is. And speaking of spending, Ramp’s new index also shows just how much companies are shelling out on AI. The top 1% of businesses are paying over $7,000 per employee per month. The median? Just $11.38—a single AI seat, basically.

[Jamie]: So, some companies are “AI-pilled,” and others are just microdosing.

[Alex]: [laughs] Pretty much! But even the big spenders aren’t dropping as much on AI as they do on engineers’ salaries. Not yet, anyway.

[Jamie]: Alright, Alex, ultimate question: is Anthropic really bigger than OpenAI now?

[Alex]: If you’re going by Ramp’s spend data—yes, Anthropic’s ahead. If you’re using IDC’s surveys—no, OpenAI’s still on top. The real takeaway? The business AI landscape is so volatile, a 22-point lead can swing in 18 months. Next year, we might be having this same conversation, but with the names flipped.

[Jamie]: Or maybe DeepSeek will finally have its moment. You heard it here first, folks.

[Alex]: [laughs] Dream big, Jamie. Dream big.

[Jamie]: Alright, that’s all for today’s Nerd Level Tech AI Cast! Thanks for joining us as we geeked out over spend charts, methodology drama, and the world’s most competitive AI leaderboard.

[Alex]: Don’t forget to subscribe, leave us a review, and send us your wildest AI predictions for next year. Who knows—maybe you’ll be right.

[Jamie]: Thanks for listening, everyone!

[Alex]: Catch you next time!