The September 2026 AI Index from financial services firm Ramp indicates a shift in corporate AI spending. While adoption continues to grow, the highest-spending US companies reduced their per-employee AI costs by 9.7 percent in August, bringing the median spend to $7,205.
Ramp chief economist Ara Kharazian attributes the decline to seasonal factors, such as August vacations, and a broader market trend toward more affordable AI solutions. The effective price per million tokens has decreased by 41 percent since the March 2026 peak, reaching $0.68.
Companies are increasingly prioritizing standard models over expensive frontier alternatives. The share of tokens consumed by models like Opus, Fable, and Sol dropped from 53 percent in early August to 45 percent by early September, as organizations implement policies to restrict the use of high-cost tools.
Market data shows that 43.8 percent of US companies now pay for Anthropic services, while OpenAI holds a 39.8 percent share. Despite the rise in volume, the decline in token prices may outpace usage growth. Open-weight models remain niche, utilized by only 6.4 percent of AI-adopting firms on the platform.
The report highlights potential challenges for model providers, noting that the shift toward cheaper alternatives serves as a warning sign for future revenue. Market clarity is expected in October, when Anthropic is reportedly scheduled to file for its IPO.
