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Jun 10, 2026
Analyzed by Llama- 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct

AI-Pilled Firms Spend $7,500 per Employee Monthly on AI

AI Summary
Top AI-pilled firms spend $7,500 per employee monthly on AI, while the top 10% spend $611 monthly per employee. AI spending is rising among these firms, with a 14.1% growth per employee last month.

The AI Spending Landscape

An Nvidia executive recently revealed that the cost of compute is now greater than the salaries of his employees. Similarly, Mercor's CEO mentioned that the startup is spending more on tokens for internal agents than on employee headcount. This raises a crucial question: Are companies actually spending more on AI than on humans?

AI Expenditure Patterns

According to fresh research from the Ramp AI Index, which measures the adoption rate of AI among American businesses, the top 1% of firms — described as 'AI-pilled' — are spending $7,500 per employee per month on AI. This amount is significantly lower than the roughly $16,000 per month the average software engineer makes.

Comparative Spending

  • Top 1% of firms: $7,500 per employee per month
  • Top 10%: $611 monthly per employee
  • Median: $11.38 per employee, approximately the cost of a seat on an enterprise plan

AI Spending Trends

Despite financial pressures, AI spending is still on the rise. Among the AI-pilled firms, spending grew 14.1% per employee last month. However, it's unclear if this trend will continue. These top firms tend to mix and match multiple frontier models and platforms, giving them access to cheaper open-source models.

The Future of AI Investment

As enterprises continue to blow through their token budgets, the sustainability of high AI spending remains a significant concern. The trend of increasing AI expenditure is expected to persist, but at what cost and to what extent remains to be seen.