Italy's Digital Divide: Bridging the Gap with AI

Italy reports one of the lowest rates of artificial intelligence usage within Europe, emphasizing a wider digital skills gap. Just 19.9% of Italians utilized AI tools, trailing the European average of 32.7%. Moreover, Italy's older demographic and digital proficiency lag behind many EU nations.

Italy's adoption of artificial intelligence lags behind most of Europe, with only 19.9% of Italians using AI tools as of last year. The data, released by national statistics agency ISTAT, underscores a persistent digital skills deficit in Italy, the euro zone's third-largest economy.

Romania was the only EU nation with lower AI engagement, at 17.8%. With Italy's population median age set at 48.7 by 2024, compared to the EU average of 44.7, the country grapples with aging demographics and limited digital skill sets.

Surveys show nearly 10% of Italians hadn't accessed the internet in the last three months, with only a few countries, including Poland and Portugal, posting higher figures. This highlights Italy's need to bolster its digital infrastructure and education.