State of AI survey: I asked 7000+ web developers how they use AI in 2026

# State of AI 2026 Source: [https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US) Whether you're pro\- or anti\-AI, I think most of us agree that AI is having a huge impact on our work as developers, and beyond that, on the world at large\. The 2026 edition of the State of Web Dev AI survey collected data from**7,258**developers, providing a lot of fascinating material to study this impact\. And while I would certainly recommend checking out the full survey results at your own pace, here are four key trends to get started exploring the data\. ## \#1: Growing AI Adoption It's important to acknowledge that open surveys such as this one can suffer from inherent selection bias\. In other words, an AI\-focused survey is probably more likely to be filled out by developers who already use and care about AI\. With that caveat in mind, if we assume that the trends revealed here apply to the industry at large then AI\-assisted coding's transition from an early\-adopter experiment to a standard practice is now well underway\. This becomes clear when looking at[the proportion of AI\-generated code produced by respondents](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/usage/#ai_generated_code_balance), which has jumped from**28%**on average in 2025 to**56%**this year, with the 75%\+ segments seeing the highest growth \(delta from the previous year shown by striped bar overlays\)\. What proportion of the code you produce is AI\-generated? % of question respondents Similarly, respondents are also using AI much more often, with the percentage of respondents[stating they use AI “constantly”](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/usage/#ai_code_generation_frequency)doubling year\-over\-year\. How frequently do you use AI tools to generate or refactor code? % of question respondents #### Group by: #### Sort by: 1 \[en\-US\] tools\.coding\_agents\_assistants 2 \[en\-US\] tools\.coding\_agents\_assistants 3 \[en\-US\] tools\.coding\_agents\_assistants #### Experience - **Used it**:Respondents who have used an item\. - **Heard of it**:Respondents who have heard about an item, but haven't used it\. - **Never heard of it**:Respondents who have never heard about an item\. #### Sentiment - **Positive**:Respondents who are interested in learning more about a technology; or are willing to use it again\. - **Neutral**:Responents who did not indicate any sentiment about a technology\. - **Negative**:Respondents who are not interested in learning more about a technology; or have used it and had a negative experience\. These agents are emerging as a more convenient way to interact with LLMs, and potentially replacing chatbots, app generators, and other specialized tools\. As a consequence, despite**ChatGPT**having the edge in terms of sheer popularity,**Claude**is[the model that developers actually pay for the most](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/models/#models_paid_for)\. Out of the models mentioned here, which one do you or your company actually pay for? % of question respondents ## \#3: Race to Monetization Speaking of paying more: now that we've all gotten hooked on cheap AI subsidized by unprecedented VC funding rounds, our collective addiction is making it easier for AI labs to start raising prices\. And this translates into a[clear increase in individual AI spend](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/usage/#ai_personal_expenses)compared to last year\. How much do you spend on AI tools per month \(in USD\)? % of question respondents Only time will tell if this increased monetization will justify the current eye\-popping AI company valuations, or if they instead mean we're in the midst of[an AI bubble](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/opinions/#ai_bubble_currently)\. But either way, survey respondents certainly think that we are\. We're currently in an “AI bubble” % of question respondents ### Don't Miss the Next Survey\! Leave us your email and we’ll let you know when the next survey takes place\. ## \#4: Increased Risk Factors It would be irresponsible to talk about AI progress without also mentioning the many issues stemming from all these advances\. There is a real risk that many of us will[lose our livelihood](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/opinions/#job_security_threat)because of AI improvements\. After all, whether AI can actually do our jobs or not, all that's required for developers to be replaced is that management*believes*it can\. AI tools are a threat to my job security % of question respondents But the list of[AI risks](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/risks-pain-points/#ai_risks)does not stop there\. Right now, armed forces throughout the world are working on autonomous drones and targeting systems that could lead to diminished responsibility and accountability; and this is of course happening against a backdrop of ever\-increasing AI resource consumption and accelerating climate change\. Which of these general AI risks and issues are you most concerned about? 05 Negative cognitive impacts 09 Copyright and ethics issues % of question respondents Even if you discount these externalities, as we rely on AI more and more, it's hard to shake the feeling that maybe our new cyber\-buddies aren't being fully truthful with us, with**hallucinations and inaccuracies**being cited as the[most common AI pain points](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/risks-pain-points/#ai_pain_points)\. What are your top pain points when it comes to actually using AI tools? 01 Hallucination & inaccuracies 11 Lack of prompt understanding 12 Poor generated code quality % of question respondents ## The AI Future Is Here Whether We Want It or Not I'll be honest: I'm not sure where all this leaves us\. But whether you think we should be embracing AI, fighting it, or maybe something in between, one thing's for sure: it's becoming increasingly difficult to ignore it\. So if like me you haven't quite made up your mind on this complex topic, hopefully[these survey results](https://2026.stateofai.dev/en-US/models/)can be one more data point that will help you make more informed decisions–without having to ask ChatGPT first\.