Mexico's AI Divide: Only 13% Use Advanced Systems

Mexico placed eighth among 20 countries in the 2026 Latin American Artificial Intelligence Index, scoring 52 points out of 100. A related item El Universal presented said AI use in Mexican companies remained at 64%, while only 13% used advanced systems, according to a specialist. Those figures show a gap between reported company use and use of advanced AI.

A regional ranking of uneven capacity

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) compiled the index to assess countries’ capacity to adopt, invest in, research, develop and use artificial intelligence. Mexico’s lowest scores came in enabling factors, research, development and adoption. Its strongest performance was in governance, including national strategies, cybersecurity legal frameworks and responsible institutions.

Chile, Brazil and Uruguay ranked in the top three, each scoring more than 60 points. ECLAC classifies countries above that threshold as “pioneers,” a group with “high and relatively consolidated performance in infrastructure, talent, research, innovation and governance.” Mexico’s 52 points put it in the “adopters” category, which covers countries scoring from 35 to 60.

ECLAC describes adopters as countries with relevant capacities but with gaps that “limit a wider deployment of AI.” Colombia, Costa Rica, Argentina, Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, Panama, El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago appeared in that category, in that order. So Mexico sits among countries with established capacities and identified limits in the areas the index measures.

Countries scoring below 35 fell into the “explorers” group. They’re at an early development stage and face restrictions in infrastructure, research, adoption or governance. Paraguay, Jamaica, Cuba, Guatemala, Bolivia, Honduras and Venezuela were listed there.

Infrastructure and specialist training

ECLAC identified mobile-network and 5G coverage as relevant to the use of AI applications. Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Colombia and Peru had the region’s broadest coverage, according to the report. Mexico’s broad coverage appears alongside lower scores in adoption, research, development and enabling factors.

The region averaged 12.4 points out of 100 for professional training of AI experts. Mexico scored 15.8, above that average, but below Paraguay at 28.2, Brazil at 24.5, Costa Rica at 22.6 and Colombia at 19.6. Trinidad and Tobago scored 14.6, while Chile scored 14; all of these countries, like Mexico, scored above the regional average.

In May 2026, Costa Rica maintained what the report described as “exceptional regional leadership” in its concentration of AI engineering skills, with more than twice the points of Chile and Colombia. Mexico, Uruguay and Argentina formed the next group. The index’s figures distinguish Mexico’s comparatively broad mobile and 5G coverage and above-average professional training score from its lower results in research, development and adoption. The company figures add another measure: AI use remained at 64%, but only 13% of companies used advanced systems.