7 in 10 Belgians use generative AI: Unpacking Our Study

Generative AI is no longer a geek tool or a gadget for early adopters. 67% of Belgians already use generative AI and 36% of them have made a purchase decision based solely on an AI recommendation, according to the Semactic & PingPrime study conducted by IntoTheMinds in November 2025 on 1,000 Belgians and 312 professionals. The visibility playing field has flipped in less than two years.

This article unpacks every key figure of the study, what it means for Belgian brands, and the concrete actions to prioritize to stay visible in the answers of ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, or Claude. We co-funded it with Semactic because no solid local data existed on the real impact of AI on search behavior in Belgium. Here's what it reveals.

The bottom line

• 67% of Belgians use generative AI in November 2025 (Semactic & PingPrime / IntoTheMinds study, n=1,000), and 76% among 18-34 year-olds.
• 36% of Belgians have already bought a product or service on AI recommendation, and 33% use AI to prepare their purchases.
• 69% of Belgians trust AI responses, a level of trust higher than the one many brands grant their own channels.
• 34% of Belgian workers regularly use AI at work (vs 13% in 2024), and Belgium ranks 4th in Europe for enterprise AI adoption.
• For brands, the signal is clear: being present in Google is no longer enough — you have to be present inside the AI's answer.

What is the methodology of the Semactic & PingPrime study?

The Semactic & PingPrime study "Belgians in the era of generative AI" was conducted in November 2025 by the independent research institute IntoTheMinds, on a representative sample of 1,000 Belgians aged 18 to 65, supplemented by a B2B component on 312 professionals. It is, to our knowledge, the largest and most current survey on the topic in Belgium.

The questionnaire covered four dimensions: adoption (who uses AI and how often), uses (for what purpose), trust (how far Belgians are willing to follow an AI recommendation), and business impact (how these behaviors change purchase journeys). The results were weighted by age, gender, linguistic region, and SES to ensure representativeness of the connected Belgian population.

Why fund this study? Because at the time of its launch, the only data available in Belgium came from Deloitte (Digital Consumer Trends 2025, measuring 56% AI users), PwC (B2B-only component), and Statbel (companies only). None of them answered the question that every brand was asking us: are our customers using ChatGPT to compare us, and how many actually buy on its recommendations?

Our field observation. When we launched this study with Semactic, our working hypothesis was that AI adoption in Belgium hovered around 50%. The 67% result surprised us, including the gap with Deloitte (56%). The gap is largely explained by the question scope: Semactic measured declared use "at least once," Deloitte measured regular use in the last month. Both numbers are true — they just measure two different things.

For the full methodological detail, the official release and statistical annexes are available via MM.be (press release) and DH.net coverage. To understand how this data fits into a broader GEO strategy, see our complete guide to GEO.

67% of Belgians use generative AI — who are they?

67% of Belgians now use generative AI, but this average hides a sharp generational divide: 76% of 18-34 year-olds use it regularly versus a much smaller share among seniors (Semactic & PingPrime / IntoTheMinds, November 2025). Cross-referencing with Deloitte, we see that 85% of Belgian students and 64% of working-age adults are already users.

Sources: Semactic & PingPrime / IntoTheMinds (Nov. 2025), Deloitte Belgium Digital Consumer Trends (2025), PwC Belgium "Bridging the AI Gap" (2025), Statbel (2025).

A sharp generational gap, but narrowing fast

18-34 year-olds are the locomotives of adoption at 76% regular users. This is the generation that learned to query an AI before learning to formulate a complex Google query. Even more striking, more than 80% of young Belgians have noticed or used Google's AI summaries (the famous AI Overviews), a sign that AIO has become a reading reflex in this age range.

Among working-age adults (all generations combined), Deloitte measures 64% users, in line with the Semactic trend. The only group still lagging is 55-65 year-olds, but their catch-up is accelerating: we observe it across the cohorts we track in our engagements, where the share of seniors active on ChatGPT doubled between January and October 2025.

The gender gap is real — but on daily use

The men/women gap on simple awareness of AI is minimal (77% m vs 73% w, Deloitte 2025). On daily use in the workplace, however, the gap widens: 19% of men use AI every day at work versus 9% of women, a ratio of more than 2 to 1, according to PwC Belgium. For HR and operational leadership, that's an adoption inequality signal to correct.

Citation capsule. In November 2025, 67% of Belgians said they use generative AI, and 76% of 18-34 year-olds use it regularly, according to the Semactic & PingPrime study conducted by IntoTheMinds on 1,000 Belgians. This massive adoption in less than two years repositions AI as a brand discovery channel, not just a productivity tool.

To dig deeper into the generation-by-generation dimension, see our companion analysis 36% of Belgians buy on AI recommendation: what to do for your brand?

36% of Belgians have already bought on AI recommendation — which sectors are hit?

The number that changes the game for e-commerce: 36% of Belgians say they've made a purchase decision based solely on an AI recommendation, and 33% use AI to prepare their purchases upstream (Semactic & PingPrime, November 2025). Of the 67% AI users, more than half have therefore crossed the line from advice to purchase. That's massive.

Source: Semactic & PingPrime / IntoTheMinds, study on 1,000 Belgians, November 2025. Multi-answers: a single user can combine several uses.

AI has become the new "product comparator"

The three dominant uses reinforce each other. 68% of users use it to learn about a new topic, 53% to ask for practical advice, 33% to prepare a purchase. These three steps make up the typical funnel of a purchase decision. When a Belgian is considering a new subscription, a household appliance, or a trip, there is now a "ChatGPT / Perplexity" step before visiting the retailer's site.

Which sectors are most exposed?

The Semactic study doesn't segment by vertical, but cross-referencing with the global Adobe and BrightEdge data, we identify the sectors where the impact is already measurable:

• Sector|AIO coverage (BrightEdge)|Measurable impact
• Healthcare|88% of queries|Search → AI answer substitution
• Education / Training|83%|4.6x growth in 6 months
• B2B Tech / Software|82%|Shortened purchase cycle
• Restaurants|78%|AI recommendations = in-store traffic
• Retail / E-commerce|+693% AI traffic YoY (Adobe)|+31% conversion vs other sources
• Finance|~5%|Low AIO exposure currently

Visitors coming from AI sources convert 31% better than other sources, and their bounce rate is 33% lower, according to Adobe Analytics. The quality of AI traffic exceeds traditional SEO traffic across nearly all e-commerce indicators.

Our field observation. Across the Belgian e-commerce players we support, we see in Google Analytics 4 that the share of traffic referred by ChatGPT and Perplexity rose from less than 0.3% in January 2025 to 1.8% in November 2025, with a conversion rate 4 to 9 times higher than the average. It's still a modest volume, but the trajectory is exponential, and the quality of that traffic already justifies targeted GEO investments.

To go further on e-commerce, see our GEO e-commerce guide and our dedicated deep dive 36% of Belgians buy on AI recommendation.

69% of Belgians trust AI — what does it mean for brands?

The most counter-intuitive data point in the study: 69% of Belgians say they trust AI-generated responses, and trust climbs to 75% among 18-34 year-olds (Semactic & PingPrime, November 2025). This level exceeds the trust Belgians grant many traditional marketing channels, and it has a direct consequence: what AI says about your brand carries weight.

Trust is conditioned by clarity

The study reveals that 51% of users cite the clarity of the answer as the primary criterion for judging it reliable. Not length, not depth, not displayed authority: clarity. This matches our GEO audit observations: the content LLMs cite the most answers a precise question in under 80 words, with a sourced statistic.

A trust ceiling on critical decisions

This trust is not unlimited. PwC Belgium measures that 65% of Belgian workers are not comfortable with a decision-making AI that would make decisions on their behalf, for example in HR or budget management. And 40% of Belgians don't interact with AI in their professional environment at all. The trust terrain is asymmetric: high for getting informed or comparing, low for deciding in your place.

Citation capsule. 69% of Belgians trust generative AI responses, and 75% among 18-34 year-olds, according to the Semactic & PingPrime / IntoTheMinds study (November 2025, n=1,000). This level of trust exceeds that of many traditional channels and makes a brand's presence in AI answers a new brand authority lever.

For brands, the implication is threefold. First, controlling what AI says about you becomes a reputation matter, not just visibility. Second, trust is built through the consistency of external sources (Google reviews, Reddit, local press, Wikipedia). Finally, perceived reliability translates into purchase intent: 65% of AI shoppers say they're more confident in their decisions, and 68% return fewer purchases, per Adobe.

To structure this trust in your content strategy, read our guide E-E-A-T and AI: how to become the source cited by generative engines.

34% of Belgian workers use AI daily — what is the business impact?

The B2B component of the study, cross-referenced with PwC Belgium and Statbel data, delivers a strong figure: 34% of Belgian workers now regularly use AI at work, versus only 13% in 2024. That's a 2.5x multiplication in twelve months. On the company side, 34.5% of Belgian organizations use AI in 2025, vs 13.8% in 2023.

Sources: Statbel (2025), SPF Économie (2025), PwC Belgium "Bridging the AI Gap" (2025).

Large companies lead, SMEs follow fast

3 out of 4 large Belgian companies (250+ employees) use AI, placing Belgium in the European top tier. Medium-sized companies (50-249 employees) sit at 35.7% with +12 points/year growth. Small companies, at 20.7%, stay above the EU27 average of 11.2% per Statbel.

The pilot / production gap remains the major brake

PwC measures that 76% of Belgian companies are experimenting with or piloting AI, but that only 21% have moved beyond the pilot stage to scale. That's the "AI Gap" that gives their study its title. And 67% of executives have never heard of AI agents — a literacy lag signal at the top of the decision-making chain.

Our field observation. Belgium has a unique European advantage: our SMEs use AI nearly twice as much as the EU27 average (20.7% vs 11.2%). This comes from three specific factors: the significant share of tertiary-sector SMEs, native multilingualism (FR/NL/EN, which forces the use of AI translation and writing tools), and geographic concentration that facilitates best-practice diffusion. It's a strategic window for Belgian B2B brands targeting these SMEs.

To go further on B2B AI, see our GEO guide for SMEs.

Is Belgium ahead of or behind Europe?

On professional use of AI, Belgium is in the European top tier — 4th in the EU for enterprise adoption (SPF Économie, 2025). On individual use, the picture is more nuanced: Eurostat measures 32.7% of Europeans (16-74 year-olds) as AI users in 2025, far below the 67% measured by Semactic in Belgium.

The gap is explained by two factors: Eurostat covers a broader age range (from 16 to 74), and the Eurostat question targets the use of "gen AI tools" in the strict sense, whereas Semactic includes any interaction with an AI assistant (including responses in Google or smartphone built-in functions).

Here is the 2025 European ranking per Eurostat (December 2025):

• Country|% of adults 16-74 using gen AI|EU position
• Denmark|48.4%|1st
• Estonia|46.6%|2nd
• Malta|46.5%|3rd
• Belgium (Eurostat)|approx. 35-40%|top tier
• Belgium (Semactic, broader methodology)|67%|national reference
• EU average|32.7%|—
• Bulgaria|22.5%|bottom tier
• Italy|19.9%|bottom tier
• Romania|17.8%|last

Why Belgium is moving fast

Several structural factors explain this lead. Belgium is trilingual (FR/NL/DE), so Belgians have long been familiar with automated translation and productivity tools. 61% of Belgians have at least basic digital skills, versus 54% in 2021 (ITdaily / Statbel). And the Belgian B2B ecosystem, dense in tertiary services and European headquarters, accelerates the diffusion of professional AI tools.

The arrival of Google AI Mode in Belgium in October 2025 — France remains excluded at this stage — further accentuates this lead. To understand the concrete consequences, see Google AI Mode: what it changes for your visibility in 2026 and AI Overviews in Belgium: state of play.

What should Belgian brands do with this data?

The Semactic & PingPrime study doesn't only deliver numbers: it outlines five priority actions for 2026. On the 67% of Belgians who use AI of which 36% buy on AI recommendation, not being present in generative engine answers is equivalent to losing a storefront on the country's biggest commercial artery. Here's our strategic read.

Action 1 — Audit your current LLM visibility

Before any investment, measure where you stand. How often does ChatGPT mention you on the critical queries in your sector? Are you cited by Perplexity? Do you appear in Belgian AI Overviews? Most of the brands we audit discover they are already mentioned (sometimes wrongly), without knowing it.

Launch a complete GEO audit or use our free GEO tools for a first read.

Action 2 — Restructure your key pages in Answer-First mode

The content LLMs cite has consistent characteristics: question-based H2, direct answer in under 80 words, sourced statistic per section, consistent Schema.org markup. Start from your 10 most strategic pages and restructure them per our Answer-First method to be cited by AI.

Action 3 — Build your external authority (Digital PR + UGC)

Reddit is the #1 source across all AI platforms with roughly 40% of citations. LLMs don't just settle for your site — they cross-reference mentions. A Digital PR strategy targeting 5 to 10 Belgian publications and 2 to 3 relevant Reddit / Quora communities can multiply your AI mentions in 3 to 6 months. See our method Digital PR for GEO.

Action 4 — Optimize for Belgium-friendly platforms first

Not all AI engines behave the same in Belgium. Google AI Mode and AIO are available since October 2025. ChatGPT covers all of French-speaking Europe. Perplexity favors content less than 30 days old. To structure your approach platform by platform, see:

• Platform|Belgian specificity|PingPrime resource
• ChatGPT|Cites Wikipedia 47.9% / Reddit ~40%|Appear in ChatGPT
• Google AI Overviews|Available BE since 2025|Appear in Google AIO
• Perplexity|Favors freshness (-30 days)|Appear in Perplexity
• Claude|Implicit citations|Appear in Claude

Action 5 — Set up continuous monitoring

AI visibility is volatile: only 30% of brands remain visible from one run to the next in LLMs, according to recent studies. Without continuous monitoring, you're flying blind. To structure this process, see our complete guide to AI citation monitoring or our GEO engagement offer.

Our field observation. Across the 25+ brands we support in Belgium and Europe, those that structure these five actions in less than 6 months see their AI mention rate grow by 30 to 80%, and their LLM-referred traffic climb by 200 to 600% in a year. The delay isn't fatal — for now. It will become so in 2026-2027 if nothing is done.

FAQ

Why a gap between Semactic's 67% and Deloitte's 56%?

The gap comes from methodology. Semactic / IntoTheMinds measures declared use "at least once," on 1,000 Belgians aged 18-65, in November 2025. Deloitte measures regular use in the last month, on a broader age range. Both numbers are true: 67% of Belgians have already tried AI, 56% use it regularly. The trajectory is the same: doubling in two years.

Does the study also cover the enterprise side?

Yes. The B2B component covers 312 Belgian professionals surveyed alongside the 1,000 consumers. The results converge with those of PwC Belgium "Bridging the AI Gap", which measures 34% of Belgian workers as regular AI users at work (vs 13% in 2024) and 76% of companies in pilot phase, with only 21% at scale.

What is the adoption projection for 2026-2027 in Belgium?

Extrapolating from the current trajectory (67% in 2025, vs ~30% in 2023), we estimate AI use in Belgium will reach 80-85% of connected adults by the end of 2027. The share of Belgians buying on AI recommendation, at 36% in 2025, should cross 50% by 2027. Brands that haven't kicked off their GEO strategy in 2026 will face a structural lag that's hard to close, as SEO laggards experienced in 2008-2012.

What are the GDPR implications of this massive adoption?

The study doesn't directly address GDPR, but it highlights that 65% of Belgian workers are wary of decision-making AI (PwC, 2025). For brands, that means communicating clearly on data use in customer-facing AI tools, providing explicit opt-outs, and framing internal LLM use (ChatGPT Enterprise rather than public, prompt-injection awareness, governance). The European AI Act reinforces these obligations in 2026.

How does this study compare with European benchmarks?

On individual use, Eurostat measures 32.7% of Europeans 16-74 as AI users in 2025, with Denmark leading (48.4%). On enterprise use, Belgium is 4th in the EU. The broader Semactic methodology gives 67%. The two readings converge: Belgium is in the top tier of European countries, particularly in B2B, and the generational gap is more pronounced than the EU average.

Conclusion: Belgium has flipped — your content has to follow

The Semactic & PingPrime study delivers a clear message: generative AI is now part of the daily life of 2 in 3 Belgians, and more than 1 in 3 has already bought on its recommendation. This is no longer an emerging trend, it's a measurable economic reality. For Belgian brands, the question is no longer "do GEO or not," but "start now or catch up later."

The competitive advantage window is still open, because the majority of Belgian brands haven't started the transition. Those that do in 2026 — by restructuring their pages, consolidating their external authority, steering their AI visibility — will capture a disproportionate share of the new AI-referred traffic that converts 4 to 9 times better than traditional SEO traffic.

To take action, start with our complete guide to GEO, launch a GEO audit of your brand, or contact us via our engagement offer to structure your 2026 strategy.