Small businesses using AI are four times more likely to say it helped them hire than say it led to cuts, according to the 2026 AI Impact Report from Intuit QuickBooks. In these countries, businesses using AI are more likely to say it has increased employment than decreased it. In the U.S., four times as many businesses report AI-driven hiring as report cuts. Time back in the day: 27% say AI has shortened their workday, compared with 8% who say it’s gotten longer. Across every country tracked in the 2026 AI Impact Report, employee management and legal decisions consistently rank at the bottom of AI use cases.