Artificial Intelligence Adoption and Organizational Performance among Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria

This study examines the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and organizational performance among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. Drawing on the Technology–Organisation–Environment (TOE) framework and the Resource-Based View, the study adopted a cross-sectional survey design and collected data from 384 SME owner-managers across Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt using a structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and multiple regression with partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that AI-enabled automation, data analytics and machine learning, AI-powered customer service and AI decision-support systems jointly and significantly predict organizational performance (R² = 0.612, p < 0.001). Organisational readiness significantly moderated this relationship. High implementation cost, a persistent skills gap and unreliable infrastructure emerged as the dominant barriers. The study concludes that AI adoption is a meaningful driver of both financial and non-financial performance among Nigerian SMEs, and recommends targeted policy support, affordable AI-as-a-service models and structured digital-skills programmes.