Worldwide spending on generative AI is projected to reach $297 billion, but access and trust remain harder constraints for surrogate systems. In the US, 15.1% of adults report mobility related activity limitations, which makes surrogate mediated interaction a practical access issue, not just a technical one. The market is also moving fast, with $72.5 billion in projected RPA spending and 36% of adults globally reporting deepfake exposure.
Key Takeaways
- 15.1% of adults aged 18+ in the US reported limitations in activities due to difficulty with mobility in 2022 (a measurable constraint that can drive assisted workflows)
- 3,147,000 jobs in the US are supported by computer systems design and related services (a labor base relevant to implementing surrogate-driven systems)
- In 2023, 18.9% of US employed persons worked in computer and mathematical occupations (a skilled labor signal for deploying AI and surrogate systems)
- $4.4 billion global assistive technology devices market forecast by 2028 (expected growth in a segment adjacent to surrogate-assisted experiences)
- Worldwide spending on generative AI is projected to total $297 billion in 2026 (growth trajectory enabling surrogate capabilities)
- 66.2% of the global population were mobile internet users in 2023 (connectivity enabling surrogate digital delivery)
- 63% of consumers are willing to share data with companies if it improves personalization (enabling surrogate systems that tailor outputs)
- 83% of online adults in the US use smartphone internet (device penetration enabling mobile surrogate experiences)
- 57% of respondents reported using AI tools at work at least once per week (2024 survey), supporting adoption potential for AI-assisted “surrogate” agents
- The NIST AI RMF 1.0 documents 4 risk management activities under the Govern function (useful measurable governance granularity)
- Broken access control was ranked as the #1 risk in OWASP Top 10 2021 (directly relevant to secure surrogate/API operations)
- 10.8% of global email traffic was spam in 2023 (Cisco/Threat Intelligence; year-specific measurement), highlighting the volume of synthetic/automated content that surrogate systems must classify
Surrogate ready adoption is rising fast as data, AI, mobile access, and security demand grow globally.
Related reading
01 · Category
Industry Trends10 stats
01
15.1% of adults aged 18+ in the US reported limitations in activities due to difficulty with mobility in 2022 (a measurable constraint that can drive assisted workflows)
02
3,147,000 jobs in the US are supported by computer systems design and related services (a labor base relevant to implementing surrogate-driven systems)
03
In 2023, 18.9% of US employed persons worked in computer and mathematical occupations (a skilled labor signal for deploying AI and surrogate systems)
04
90% of executives expect data to be an important driver of competitive advantage by 2025 (context for data-driven surrogate tools)
05
36% of adults globally reported seeing deepfakes in the last year in 2024 (demand context for surrogate-related verification tools)
06
1 in 3 Americans (33%) say they use at least one online banking or digital finance tool (context for customer-facing surrogate automation in financial services)
07
In 2023, the global ICT sector accounted for 5.5% of global GDP (infrastructure base for AI and surrogate operations)
08
The EU AI Act includes transparency obligations for certain AI systems intended to interact with humans (relevant to surrogate conversational experiences)
09
The US FTC has brought enforcement actions related to AI and automated decision-making resulting in financial penalties totaling hundreds of millions of dollars since 2015 (regulatory enforcement signal for surrogate-like claims)
10
43% of organizations report using microservices (2023 survey), which increases the number of service-to-service interactions that surrogate agents may orchestrate
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends in surrogate are being driven by a data and automation push, with 90% of executives expecting data to drive competitive advantage by 2025 and 36% of adults globally reporting seeing deepfakes in the last year in 2024, signaling strong demand for data driven and verification focused surrogate solutions.
02 · Category
Market Size9 stats
01
$4.4 billion global assistive technology devices market forecast by 2028 (expected growth in a segment adjacent to surrogate-assisted experiences)
02
Worldwide spending on generative AI is projected to total $297 billion in 2026 (growth trajectory enabling surrogate capabilities)
03
66.2% of the global population were mobile internet users in 2023 (connectivity enabling surrogate digital delivery)
04
Global public cloud end-user spending reached $679 billion in 2024 (forecast update), indicating spending growth tailwinds for automated AI infrastructure
05
Global generative AI market is forecast to reach $407.3 billion by 2027 (forecast), showing adjacent growth for surrogate-capable AI solutions
06
$72.5 billion global spend on RPA is forecast by 2025 (forecast), relevant to surrogate workflows that automate business processes
07
Global contact center software market is projected to reach $23.3 billion by 2028 (forecast), relevant to customer-facing surrogate automation
08
Worldwide spending on identity verification services is projected to reach $62.8 billion by 2027 (forecast), supporting verification for surrogate-driven identity and authenticity workflows
09
Global cybersecurity market size is projected to reach $345.4 billion by 2026 (forecast), providing spending context for security controls around surrogate systems
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
The Market Size outlook for Surrogate is strengthening as global spending and adjacent AI-enabled infrastructure is projected to surge, with generative AI alone expected to reach $407.3 billion by 2027 and worldwide public cloud end-user spending hitting $679 billion in 2024, supported by a mobile internet user base of 66.2% in 2023.
03 · Category
User Adoption5 stats
01
63% of consumers are willing to share data with companies if it improves personalization (enabling surrogate systems that tailor outputs)
02
83% of online adults in the US use smartphone internet (device penetration enabling mobile surrogate experiences)
03
57% of respondents reported using AI tools at work at least once per week (2024 survey), supporting adoption potential for AI-assisted “surrogate” agents
04
56% of survey respondents believe their organizations will use generative AI in the future for customer service and support (2024 survey), relevant for surrogate-like customer interaction automation
05
31% of developers report adopting AI-assisted coding tools in the last 12 months (2024 developer survey), indicating ecosystem-level readiness for “surrogate” programming productivity
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
User adoption for surrogate systems is strong, with 83% of US online adults using smartphone internet and 63% of consumers willing to share data for better personalization, while work adoption signals are also rising with 57% using AI tools weekly.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics2 stats
01
The NIST AI RMF 1.0 documents 4 risk management activities under the Govern function (useful measurable governance granularity)
02
Broken access control was ranked as the #1 risk in OWASP Top 10 2021 (directly relevant to secure surrogate/API operations)
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Under the Performance Metrics lens, the combination of 4 measurable Govern risk management activities in NIST AI RMF 1.0 and OWASP ranking Broken access control as the #1 risk in 2021 underscores that governance-focused controls and access security are the highest-impact performance targets for surrogate operations.
05 · Category
Security & Risk1 stats
01
10.8% of global email traffic was spam in 2023 (Cisco/Threat Intelligence; year-specific measurement), highlighting the volume of synthetic/automated content that surrogate systems must classify
Interpretation
Security & Risk Interpretation
In 2023, spam made up 10.8% of global email traffic, underscoring how persistent email-based threats can amplify Security and Risk exposure for organizations relying on email channels.
report visual · Comparison
Healthcare-ready surrogate demand signals
High engagement with digital and AI-enabled services suggests strong adoption potential for surrogate-driven workflows.
66.2% of the global population were mobile internet users in 2023 (connectivity enabling surrogate digital delivery)66.2%
57% of respondents reported using AI tools at work at least once per week (2024 survey), supporting adoption potential f
57%
56% of survey respondents believe their organizations will use generative AI in the future for customer service and supp
56%
15.1% of adults aged 18+ in the US reported limitations in activities due to difficulty with mobility in 2022 (a measura
15.1%
source-verifiedcdc.gov · itu.int · ibm.com · g2.com2024
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Catherine Wu. (2026, February 13). Surrogate Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/surrogate-statistics
MLA
Catherine Wu. "Surrogate Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/surrogate-statistics.
Chicago
Catherine Wu. 2026. "Surrogate Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/surrogate-statistics.
Sources & references
27 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+5 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)